The Department of Infrastructure's handling of a data breach with its 'Go School' card system is being criticised by the data protection officer.
In December, a parent logged on to top up their child's card, but entered their number incorrectly, which brought up someone else's personal details, including an ex-directory telephone number.
The department said it was down to a weak password, which was coincidentally entered by the parent, having been told this by the supplier of the system.
In fact, it was because the supplier, under pressure to get the system ready on time, had disabled the password system while it carried out some tests, and forgot to turn it back on until just over a day later.
Data Protection Officer Iain McDonald:Clip 1