Marise Payne issues apology after stranded Aussies' identities were exposed in third bungle

Foreign Minister Marise Payne has apologised after the personal details of Australians stranded overseas was exposed for the third time in three months.

More stranded Australians' details have been exposed.

More stranded Australians' details have been exposed. Source: AAP

The identities of Australians stranded overseas have been accidentally exposed for the third time in as many months.

At least 15 Australians in France have had their details shared by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade in a data breach.

One person involved has described the privacy breach as adding insult to injury.
Foreign Minister Marise Payne said her department was working to ensure it did not happen again.

"I am very sorry that these events have occurred," she told ABC radio on Friday.

"I know our officials are trying very hard to support as many Australians as they possibly can overseas.

"It is important to be careful with people's private information and that has absolutely been reinforced to my department."

SBS News has contacted DFAT for comment.
Foreign Minister Marise Payne has apologised after stranded Aussies' identities were exposed for a third time.
Foreign Minister Marise Payne has apologised after stranded Aussies' identities were exposed for a third time. Source: AAP
Earlier in October, DFAT issued an apology after disclosing the private email addresses of more than 2,700 stranded Australians trying to get home.

DFAT forgot to hide the email addresses on correspondence offering loans to those still stuck overseas to help them pay for living expenses or a flight home.

In the email, the addressees were mistakenly listed in the "to" field, rather than "bcc", making them visible to other recipients.

The department tried to recall the email before asking recipients to delete it in order to minimise the security risk.
More than 32,000 stranded Australians remain overseas.

The weekly cap of 6000 international arrivals will be discussed at a national cabinet meeting on Friday.

A repatriation flight from London is also due to arrive in Darwin around noon and the 161 passengers will be taken to Howard Springs for two weeks quarantine.


Share
Published 23 October 2020 8:06am
Updated 23 October 2020 8:15am
Source: AAP, SBS



Share this with family and friends


Get SBS News daily and direct to your Inbox

Sign up now for the latest news from Australia and around the world direct to your inbox.

By subscribing, you agree to SBS’s terms of service and privacy policy including receiving email updates from SBS.

Download our apps
SBS News
SBS Audio
SBS On Demand

Listen to our podcasts
An overview of the day's top stories from SBS News
Interviews and feature reports from SBS News
Your daily ten minute finance and business news wrap with SBS Finance Editor Ricardo Gonçalves.
A daily five minute news wrap for English learners and people with disability
Get the latest with our News podcasts on your favourite podcast apps.

Watch on SBS
SBS World News

SBS World News

Take a global view with Australia's most comprehensive world news service
Watch the latest news videos from Australia and across the world