Te Whatu Ora Covid data breach: Woman’s sleepless night after information stolen

Barry Young has pleaded not guilty to charges relating to the data breach. Photo / Mark Mitchell

A member of the public whose personal information was caught up in the Health New Zealand - Te Whatu Ora Covid data breach says she barely slept after finding out her data had been compromised.

The woman, who does not want to be named, said she now fears a person from her past who had hurt her might be able to find out how to contact her due to the privacy breach.

She received an email from Te Whatu Ora this week informing her she is one of thousands of people whose information was stolen in the data breach last year.

Most of the people affected are those who carried out Covid-19 vaccinations for Te Whatu Ora, but the woman said she was just a “pleb with complex health issues”.

“It’s no one’s business. If I want to get a shot of the Covid vaccination, that’s my choice, it’s nothing to do with anybody else,” she said.

She also has a daughter with severe lung disease who could suffer serious complications from Covid who had also received the vaccine.

“Who are they to judge us?”

The email the woman received explained her next of kin and contact information had been identified as being involved in the breach.

“We want to reassure you that we have found no evidence to suggest that any of this information was either inappropriately used or shared more widely,” the email said.

The woman said she “barely slept all night, I’m so upset”.

Barry Young at an earlier hearing in the Wellington District Court. Photo / Mark Mitchell

“I cried. I felt exposed, because in my past there is someone who hurt me ... if my contact information is out there, I don’t know who can access it.”

The woman was also “absolutely furious” to see news coverage of a former Te Whatu Ora employee attending court for allegedly accessing a computer system for dishonest purposes.

Barry Young has been charged in relation to the data breach, which has affected at least 12,000 people.

He attended Wellington District Court surrounded by supporters bearing signs about freedom and justice.

“Who do they think they are? It’s not their freedom, it’s my personal information,” the woman said. “I can’t believe they’re even allowed in the building.”

She felt an apology email from Te Whatu Ora was not enough, and wanted the agency to provide more support to victims, including by keeping them fully informed of the court process.

Te Whatu Ora chief people officer Andrew Slater said they were continuing to contact people impacted by the data breach.

“We deeply regret what happened and apologise sincerely to those affected. We have made information, advice and support available, and we encourage anyone who needs additional support to get in touch with us directly,” he said in a statement.

Melissa Nightingale is a Wellington-based reporter who covers crime, justice and news in the capital. She joined the Herald in 2016 and has worked as a journalist for 10 years.