Data Protection (General)

by slowhands , proud of his ancient Dean Forest roots, Monday, November 05, 2007, 20:19 (6230 days ago) @ monfamilies

I'm not a lawyer or legally trained, so I can only offer my understanding. I'm with you, finding it hard to understand why information that is freely available ( i.e. public records )can be subject to the DP Act. However we now live in an era where the DP Act exist, as does the Freedom of Information Act, and many other pieces of law.

The best understanding I have is its not so much the information as the way you protect it, handle it, and potentially distribute it, that puts us in the scope of the DP act.

To a certain point we have to live with it :-)

"Identity fraudsters use more recent information to steal someones identity"

Long term fraud occurs when a criminal takes on the identity of a child or young person who has died in the past and who has now reached adult age.

They firstly identify this person by scouring graveyards or by searching through death records. A birth certificate is obtained and this is used to apply for a passport, driving licence and other official documentation. Over time a full identity is built up and the criminal ‘becomes’ the deceased person.

Long term fraud is normally associated with serious crime such as money laundering, drug smuggling, terrorism or people trafficking.