One of the issues we discuss a lot in the Law, Tech, and Privacy class concerns records that have previously been available through government sources (such as courthouses or the department of motor vehicles), but are now accessible online. We typically think of these problems as being different from a pre-digital world because of greater ease of access to the information. However, the corollary problem is that misuse of that information has also been made easier due to advances in technology. This would suggest not only that we should be concerned about how information should be controlled when governments move to making the information digital, but also the availability of information even in its "analog" form.
The state of Minnesota has taken both of these concerns to heart in a new proposal from Governor Tim Pawlenty. Pawlenty would like to move away from the presumed openness of certain government records, including reducing use of Social Security numbers, prohibiting access to driver's license information, and punishing the unauthorized use of telephone records. "Violations could result in penalties for as long as one year in prison and a $5,000 fine."
“We need to start with the obligation of government to protect all citizens, and that all personal information that government has about individuals is private,” Pawlenty said in the news release. “It is time for a change.”
The linked article also includes thoughts from a media ethics and law professor, Jane Kirtley, who questions the governor’s commitment to openness of government. There is obviously a difficult balance between a desire for good government and a need to protect personal privacy by restricting access to certain kinds of collected information.
An editorial in the Pioneer Press also addresses the problem from the perspective of the media’s inability to access even personal information in order to research a wide variety of possible government and citizen abuses, including "all disciplinary data about public employees, salaries and benefits of public employees, reports criticizing government organizations that contain names of individuals, data about whether criminals on parole or probation are meeting the conditions of their release, inactive police investigations, names of people delinquent on their property tax payments and the names of deadbeat parents."