More coverage of the risks of de-identified patient data being reidentified. David Perera reports: As electronic health records start to become pervasive in physician practices–thanks in no small measure to federal incentives–there’s a growing worry that electronically-collected health data could violate individual privacy, even when the data has been stripped of personally identifiable information. Testifying…
Author: Dissent
Veterans Affairs ‘broken,’ says advocate concerned with privacy breach
David Pugliese reports: Sean Bruyea may not seem like an enemy of the state but when he leafs through the 14,000 pages of documents that Veterans Affairs Canada compiled on him, he sometimes gets that impression. Veterans Affairs bureaucrats monitored the Ottawa man’s media appearances and his advocacy activities before Parliament, in which he called…
CO: Does New DNA Law Violate Privacy?
Marshall Zelinger reports (emphasis added by me): It may not be until the middle of October when we find out if the state’s new DNA law can help solve any cold cases. At 12:01 a.m. Thursday, law enforcement could begin getting a DNA sample from anyone arrested and suspected of a felony. Prior to Thursday,…
AZ: Judge denies use of victim's medical records in upcoming murder trial
Ben Backhaus reports on a case where the judge has already had to weigh the privacy of medical records of the deceased vs. the right of the defense to put on its defense: Jeffrey Martinson’s defense counsel will have to dig deeper for evidence after Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Sally Duncan rejected its request…
UK: Hundreds of confidential reports go missing
Nearly 400 confidential records were reported missing in the West Midlands in just three months, according to new figures. A total of 387 patient and staff records went missing or were stolen between April and June this year. Two other incidents, when unknown numbers of records went missing, also took place. It brings the total…
CA: Former Has-Camino Travel Agency employee accused of theft of computers, customer info
A husband and wife from South Pasadena have been arrested on suspicion of breaking into a travel agency where the woman formerly worked and stealing computers and people’s personal information, authorities said Friday. Maureen Hizon, 35, is also being investigated on suspicion of embezzling about $100,000 from the Has-Camino Travel Agency, where she had worked…