A man complained to me about the actions of his co-worker. The complainant and the co-worker were taxi drivers for the same company. The taxi company wanted to see a copy of the complainant's arrest records because there was a rumour that he might have offended in the past. The co-worker also worked as a driver at an embassy and he was able to access this information through his position at the embassy. Part of his job was to deliver vetting forms to the Police and the results to the embassy. The vetting forms were used by the embassy to screen employees by collecting, among other items, a printout of their arrests and convictions held on the Wanganui Computer.

The co-worker entered the complainant's details on a vetting form and delivered it to the Police. After it had been processed, he collected it from the Police and gave it to the taxi company. This was done without the knowledge of anyone at the embassy.

The complainant asked me to investigate the matter. I did not have to form an opinion about whether the other man had breached the Privacy Act because a settlement was reached between the parties. The man admitted that he should not have used his position at the embassy to obtain this information.

Given the seriousness of the man's actions, I had to consider whether section 80 of the Privacy Act required me to report the matter to the police. Section 80 provides:

If, during or after any investigation, the Commissioner is of the opinion that there is evidence of any significant breach of duty or misconduct on the part of any agency or any officer or employer or member of an agency, the Commissioner shall refer the matter to the appropriate authority.

In this case, the complainant reported the matter to the Police while I was still investigating his complaint and so a further referral from me would have been superfluous. I closed my file.

Indexing terms: Collecting personal information - Individual - Collecting information by unlawful means - Wanganui computer printout obtained through false application - Privacy Commissioner's duty to report - Privacy Act 1993, section 80

November 2001