One step back

A federal district court decision announced last week is a setback for individuals who wish to hold government accountable for misuse of their private data. U.S. District Judge Joan Ericksen's decision absolves the State of Minnesota of liability for the actions of John Hunt who allegedly abused the private data of more than 5,000 people while a manager for the state's Department of Natural Resources.

The Strib quotes St. Paul City Attorney Sara Grewing, who can generally be counted on to be delighted with decisions that favor the interests of government over those of citizens, as being "extremely pleased" with the ruling. Effectively, the decision suggests that governmental units won't
be liable for rogue employees who abuse the private data of many individuals even if those units have inadequate audit procedures in place to determine whether that data is being used appropriately. The silver lining, if any, is that the decision might be interpreted as shifting liability to abusers themselves who are not similarly exempted from liability. While most people aren't going to be the same attractive deep pockets that governments are, at least this may at least serve notice to serial data abusers that their behavior poses the risk of financial ruin in addition to the possibility of job loss or (admittedly remote chance) criminal prosecution.

What this ruling portends for the many cops and others who are being accused of multiple violations of a single individual's data remains to be seen. The courts may not be as sanguine about the many-to-one abuse, particularly where there's evidence of stalking or harassment, as they apparently are about one-to-many violations.