Mandatory data breach notification laws have been passed by the NSW legislature’s two chambers. These laws will affect state agencies and departments, statutory bodies, local councils, and some institutions.
After passing the lower house the day before, the Privacy and Personal Information Protection Amendment Bill was approved by the upper house on Wednesday.
The status of the bill is currently “awaiting consent.” After assent, it will take effect one year later.
State Labor “has been calling for these changes for quite some time,” according to Penny Sharpe, the head of the opposition in the Legislative Council.
She stated, “I would like to state at the outset that we do not oppose the bill, and we are delighted that the government has finally presented a plan before the House to deal with this significant issue.
“Public sector organisations in NSW retain a significant amount of sensitive data about residents of NSW, including personal, health, and financial information.
The Privacy and Personal Information Protection Act does not currently require public sector organisations in NSW to notify data breaches involving personal and health information. I must admit that really shocks me.
Abigail Boyd, a Greens MP, referred to the amendments as “far
“The bill does nothing to protect our information from being stolen. It just establishes a need that State-owned companies and public sector organisations notify those individuals impacted by a breach of personal data held by those companies or organisations, she added.
Since the requirement does not currently exist, it is astounding that any legislation is necessary to create it.
The issue of digital rights and privacy, as well as regulation and responsible technology use, will only become more essential, Boyd continued.
The Greens support this bill because it is a modest