Auckland Council's gender blunder

Auckland Council have copped flak on Twitter for the question. Photo / Twitter

People trying to sign in to Auckland Council's free wi-fi are being asked to select their gender "to help us provide you with the most relevant content".

User, Richard Hills, expressed his frustration at the unnecessary question today, sharing a screen grab from his mobile on Twitter at 12.28pm.

What the heck is this @AklCouncil - How are you varying the content for Gender? Why? So inappropriate & unneeded! pic.twitter.com/Iqq43fu5eL

— Richard Hills (@richardhills777) July 17, 2015

Auckland Council said the pop-up question was part of a three-month pilot programme to tailor internet content to users.

"The pilot finished last month and we have now removed the pop-up from our WiFi service. We apologise for any offence the pop-up may have caused," a spokesperson told the Herald Online.

@richardhills777 We agree this needs to be looked at and are following it up with the Wi-Fi operator @tomizone ^RD

— aklcouncil (@AklCouncil) July 17, 2015

Earlier today the official statistics centre for New Zealand declared a new classification for Kiwis who didn't see themselves as just male or female.

The "gender diverse" category will be used by government organisations are in discussion about its best use and implementation across other information collection.

"It's a complex issue as gender identity is about how a person feels and experiences their gender, which can change over their lifetime. We've worked with a wide range of government and community groups to finalise this standard and the terminology," said Statistics NZ manager, Jo-anne Allan.

- nzherald.co.nz