WA: Police investigating journalists' actions

AAP General News (Australia)
04-06-2008
WA: Police investigating journalists' actions

PERTH, April 6 AAP - West Australian police are investigating claims by a Perth journalist
that he was able to access private details of hospital patients from old computers found
dumped outside a hospital.

A News Limited journalist today reported that private details, including the names
and addresses of patients, were being left on old computers dumped in an open hospital
bin in a laneway at Royal Perth Hospital.

"Personal information, including patient names and addresses, dates of birth, medical
conditions and patient numbers, was accessed with ease by The Sunday Times this week,"

the journalist claimed.

WA Health Minister Jim McGinty said he had referred the matter to police and wanted
an investigation into how the information was obtained.

"We guard very closely medical records and they were not in any sense exposed other
than to a criminal act," Mr McGinty told ABC Radio.

Sgt Graham Clifford said WA police had attended Royal Perth Hospital after a complaint
was made in relation to the computers today.

"An investigation is being carried out at this stage by Perth police," Sgt Clifford said.

The paper's editor Sam Weir said on a News Limited website Mr McGinty had accused the
paper of stealing the computers and engaging a "hacker" to access their contents during
its investigation into security at RPH.

But Mr Weir said Mr McGinty's claims were incorrect.

"The Sunday Times launched an investigation into the dumping of these computers after
government sources tipped us off about the slack security at RPH," Mr Weir said.

"They were furious that patients' personal information was being left out in the open
in a publicly accessible laneway.

"The Sunday Times observed the computers in the bin for several days, easily available
for anyone to pick them up.

"When we received some of the computers the patient records contained on them were
accessed with ease."

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KEYWORD: JOURNALIST

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