Under the The Investigatory Powers Bill (recently approved by the House of Lords) internet providers will be forced to keep a full record of every
site that each one of its customers has visited.
Amongst the plethora of government departments that then will be able to snoop on our activities is HMRC.
Doubtless any snooping by HMRC will be perfectly legitimate etc. However, the risk of hacking is high.
James Blessing, chairman of the Internet Service Providers' Association, is quoted in economia:
“It only takes one bad actor to go in there and get the entire database.Let's see how this all works out then!
You can try every conceivable thing in the entire world to [protect it] but somebody will still outsmart you.”
Tax does have to be taxing.
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HMRC cannot be trusted with data. Any proportionate measure to disrupt criminality and tax evasion in the public interest should be welcomed. However, we must objectively look at the evidence of HMRC's appalling track record when it comes to handling data and even turning a blind eye to data breaches. So, for law abiding members of the public, the risks of HMRC having access to this data could be very worrying indeed... we can only hope safeguards are in place and that the ICO will take enforcement action where there are any breaches.
ReplyDeleteMakes you wonder what Osita Mba and his wife think?
ReplyDeleteAll our public dosh HMRC waste on the spinners, sorry 'communications department' and they still don't have a good reputation out there!!!
ReplyDeleteWas watching a programme on Channel 5 last night "MPs: Behind The Doors" and had to laugh when a gentleman complained (accurately?) to his MP Jacob Rees-Mogg that staff at HMRC spend too much time on things like Facebook, rather than doing real work. Now we know why, when they're not at the endless pointless meetings we read about, or bullying their staff, that they still don't have time to pick up the phone or collect tax. What a waste of vital public money.
He also suggested HMRC staff spend their time sending text messages, and on twitter, and booking holidays and surfing insurance comparisons websites. Disgusting.
DeleteThe above comments are pure bollox....we have no time to do this....Joe Public needs to work in this shithole to realise this...an ignoramus.
DeleteThey probably don't have time to do their online shopping at work as their too busy dishing out pointless plastic awards to each other. Someone should explain to the guy on telly that yes HMRC do waste time but that's all down to the incompetent management. Whatever the reason it does not help the average taxpayer when they're waiting for a response from shambolic mob.
DeleteWe all know there are governance issues within HMRC i.e. nobody independent asking the difficult questions. Perhaps the misuse of time should be included in any review of the Revenue?
DeleteI didn't see the programme but whoever the gentleman was, he certainly doesn't work for HMRC. Nobody where I work does this and I'm not sure if you can even use Facebook on HMRC computers, although we look at the news and such like at lunchtime. It doesn't help when MPs are fed fiction like this.
DeleteI can confirm that the URL to sites like facebook, YouTube etc are blocked and cannot be accessed on an HMRC machine
DeleteNot so in my office, Ken's site is obviously blocked ;) but I access Facebook in my lunch break. The messenger part of FB used to be blocked, but not so now.
DeleteSo they allow criminal data breaches by staff to go unchecked and yet they BLOCK access to Ken's site? Right at the heart of the civil service, it would appear HMRC do not have decent liberal values based on freedom and rule of law but seemingly operate some kind of dictatorship. It is plainly wrong and tax payers rightly take a dim view.
DeleteOn the issue of Hmrc's data security failures if that's what goes on then taxpayers should only give them the minimal information as required by law. Do not volunteer info you are not legally obliged to give them, the organisation's integrity has as a fact been undermined by their failure to uphold professional standards of their staff - any info provided risks being unlawfully disclosed outside Hmrc by their staff and,of great concern, without appropriate investigation & discipline to those individual officers breaking the law.
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