[LINK] Police get student data just by asking.

[Adam Todd]

I noticed no one picked up on this today:


http://www.smh.com.au/news/national/police-get-student-data-just-by-asking/2007/07/12/1183833688075.html


Police got student data just by asking

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Edmund Tadros
July 13, 2007


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    * PDF: <http://www.smh.com.au/pdf/university-info.pdf>Police paperwork
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THE University of Sydney has provided 
confidential student information to law 
enforcement officials without demanding a 
warrant, subpoena or even an explanation.

Documents show university officials were willing 
to supply the details based on little more than 
emails or faxes from officers that stated they 
wanted the information. Twenty requests for 
information related to criminal matters have been 
received by the university since 2004, according 
to documents obtained under freedom of information laws.

The agencies involved include NSW Police, the 
Crime Commission and the Australian Federal 
Police. There are exemptions under the Privacy 
and Personal Information Protection Act 1998 for 
law enforcement organisations but civil 
libertarians say these agencies should be 
obtaining subpoenas and warrants before demanding 
private information from universities.

"If police need this information for a criminal 
investigation it is not difficult for them to get 
a warrant," said David Bernie, the vice-president 
of the NSW Council of Civil Liberties.

"The whole reason we have warrants and subpoenas 
is the view that 
 police should have to go 
before a judge or magistrate and say why they need the information."

The documents show that on one occasion a federal 
officer was able to obtain a student's contact 
and course details and exam timetable without explanation.

On another a NSW officer said a student might 
have been involved in a criminal investigation 
but refused to provide details. The constable was 
given information about the student's course, 
duration of study, contact details and even data 
about how he had paid for his tuition.

When officers stated why they needed the 
information, the crimes being investigated 
involved included murder, assault, sex crimes and fraud.

It is not the first time the university has had 
its privacy policies questioned. It was 
criticised this year after allegations that ASIO 
and NSW Police were spying on student activists.

The Herald reported this week that the University 
of Technology, Sydney, also readily provided 
information to law enforcement officials about students and staff.

The Student Representative Council at Sydney 
University said it was a breach of trust for the 
university to provide the information so freely. 
"If they can't supply a subpoena it's not 
appropriate for them to be seeking this 
information," said Lucy Saunders, its general secretary.

"It's creating a climate of fear assuming police 
have a right to get any type of information they 
want without justification or consultation."

A university spokeswoman said staff made "all 
reasonable efforts to ensure the relevant 
enforcement agency has a valid and appropriate 
reason for the request". "The university's 
protocol is to refer such requests to the office 
of the general counsel or to the university's privacy officer," she said.

A federal police spokesman said such requests 
were part of routine investigations, while a 
spokeswoman for the NSW Crime Commission said it 
was not permitted to discuss details of cases.

A NSW Police spokesman said: "If a student is a 
missing person, a witness or a suspected 
criminal, the community would expect police to 
seek information from their university or school 
if it would assist their investigation."