How privacy protections will be eroded by Census 2006

This table is an extract from Evaluation of the privacy risks posed by the Census Enhancement proposal, Australian Privacy Foundation, 11 July 2005.
(There are other related materials on the Census Campaign page.)

 

Method of protecting privacy		Will it still exist in Census 2006?
Destroy all Census forms (originals and copies) after processing.		No. Imaged copies of some completed Census forms will be kept by the Government indefinitely.
Do not keep names or addresses once all Census forms have been collected.		No. Names and addresses will be kept by the ABS.
Do not keep names or addresses linked to other Census information on a database.		No. Names will be kept in the same database as (and linked to) other Census information.
Do not link Census information over time		No. Census information will be linked over time, from one Census to the next.
Do not link Census information with any other source of information		No. Census information will be linked with information from other sources.
Do not use names and addresses to link Census information with other information		No. Census information will be linked with information from other sources, using names and addresses as the key to linking.
Do not use Census information for purposes not intended or notified at the time of collection.		No. Information from the 2001 Census will be used ‘retrospectively’ in ways not intended or notified in 2001.
Do not use other information for purposes not intended or notified at the time of collection.		No. Information from other sources will be used ‘retrospectively’ in ways not intended or notified when the data was collected
Keep data aggregated in large cell sizes.		No. The geographic unit used for measuring data is to be made smaller, with th e adoption of the ‘mesh block’, which may contain as few as 30 households.
Have legislation prohibiting the disclosure of identifiable information by the ABS.		Yes – but it is not enough. The law can be changed.
Have high security protocols around access to databases.		Yes – but it is not enough. Technology can be hacked into.
Rely on the integrity of ABS staff.		Yes – but it is not enough. Staff are subject to human frailties, and organisational culture can change.

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