Rylund Johnson Yellowknife North

Madam Chair, for the third time, hopefully a charm, I MOVE that this committee recommends that the Government of the Northwest Territories, in consultation with the Information and Privacy Commissioner, and by April 1, 2023, establish a government-wide policy that ensures all employees receive appropriate training on the collection, use, and disclosure of personal information. The policy should ensure that all new employees receive training early on and all employees receive regular refreshers;

And further, that the government emphasize Indigenous recruitment and retention to fill access and privacy positions.

Thank you, Madam Chair.

The Chair Lesa Semmler

Thank you. The motion is in order. To the motion. Member for Yellowknife North.

Rylund Johnson Yellowknife North

Thank you, Madam Chair. Previously, this committee has moved motions that ATIPP staff receive training, and I believe with the new centralization of the Access and Protection of Privacy office, a lot of that is being done. But it is clear that the number of breaches we're seeing are obviously not done by ATIPP officers. They're happening on the front lines with staff who deal with private information. And this motion recommends that the Information and Privacy Commissioner is more than willing to work with the department to provide training to those people to bring down the number of breaches.

Additionally, committee would like to emphasize that, you know, not many people grow up wanting to be an access and privacy officer but it is in dire need of people with expertise. So we encourage, you know, the youth to go get some training in access to privacy and to the department to, you know, use all of the Indigenous recruitment tools we have to make sure we fill these positions and, you know, have the capacity within territory. Thank you, Madam Chair.

The Chair Lesa Semmler

Question has been called. All those in favour? All those opposed? All those abstaining?

---Carried

The motion is carried. Mr. Johnson.

Rylund Johnson Yellowknife North

Madam Chair, I move that this committee recommends that the Department of Finance, in consultation with the Information and Privacy Commissioner, by April 1, 2023, update policies governing the use of mobile handheld devices by the public service, including:

1. The Mobile Handheld Devices Policy, to expand the policy provisions for proper use to address all the ways a user can collect, use, or disclose personal information with a device.

2. The employee code of conduct to introduce provisions to protect personal privacy regarding the use of government equipment and property; and.

3. New policy guidance to address the use of personal devices and email to conduct government business;

And further, that the Department of Finance should supplement these policies with easily accessible guidance documents on how devices should and should not be used.

Thank you, Madam Chair.

The Chair Lesa Semmler

Thank you. The motion is in order. To the motion. Member for Yellowknife North.

Rylund Johnson Yellowknife North

Thank you, Madam Chair. It's quite clear that all of our policies on personal devices and handheld devices are quite outdated, and this is both an access and a privacy issue. And I guess this needs to be a reminder to the public service that please do not conduct any personal business on work cell phones and computers, and certainly do not conduct any work business on personal devices. These lines should not be blurred. They make both -- yes, the amount of information, private information that cell phones can collect these days is truly remarkable, but it takes it outside of ATIPP and it has had privacy breaches in the past.

Additionally, there's been concerns with public servants using software that is not "ATIPP-able" and thus taking decision-making outside of the Access to Information and Protection of Privacy Act. So we encourage the government to take a look at all of these policies and make sure that we're using our devices properly. Thank you.

The Chair Lesa Semmler

Thank you. To the motion.

The Chair Lesa Semmler

Question has been called. All those in favour? All those opposed? All those abstaining?

---Carried

The motion is carried. Mr. Johnson.

Rylund Johnson Yellowknife North

Madam Chair, I move that this committee recommends that the Government of the Northwest Territories provide an update on its plan to reduce the use of faxing across the health and social services system, including:

• Metrics on reductions in the use of faxing achieved so far;
• The targets and associated timelines for future reductions; and
• If faxing cannot or will not be eliminated, an explanation on why the use of fax cannot or will not be eliminated, and what measures the department is taking to mitigate the risk of data breaches arising from misaddressed documents.

Thank you, Madam Chair.

The Chair Lesa Semmler

Thank you. The motion is in order. To the motion. Member for Yellowknife North.