Data breaches raise new concerns about Australia’s e-health record

There have been calls for another stay on the rollout of Australia’s troubled My Health Record digital patient data scheme after figures revealed an increase in the number of data breaches. The Sydney Morning Herald reported that the system sustained 42 data breaches last financial year, just as the country’s government struggled to convince people, not to opt-out of the system. My Health Record has been roundly criticized as it is based around an “opt-out” principle, and as the project developed there were serious concerns about what the information could be used for and who could see it. There were worries that other government departments may be able to access the records – although researchers and public health officials can only access de-identified data from the system.
Critics also fear hackers could use the system to identify sensitive information, and those private companies could use the records for commercial gain. The latest figures from the 2017-2018 financial year were an increase compared with the 35 data breaches reported in the 2016-2017 reporting period, according to Australian Digital Health Agency figures cited by the newspaper’s website. One breach reportedly occurred after a child was mistakenly given parental authorization to view a record, 24 came from suspected cases of Medicare fraud, and 17 were due to records being accidentally used by two or more individuals.