Documents Relating to the Sharing of DVA Client Information
Dear FOI Officer,
I am making this request for access to documents under the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (Cth).
I seek access to any and all documents, records, data, and supporting material held by [Name of Agency] concerning the sharing of personal information originating from the Department of Veterans’ Affairs (DVA) over the last ten years. This includes any data transfers from or to the DVA, whether they were one-off exchanges or ongoing, systematic transfers of DVA client information, including personal, medical, financial, or service-related details concerning veterans or their dependents.
I am interested in obtaining a comprehensive understanding of what DVA client information [Authority name] has received or accessed and for what purposes. Specifically, I request:
All records of data sharing arrangements between DVA and [Authority name], including but not limited to memoranda of understanding, service-level agreements, emails, letters, meeting minutes, file transfer logs, internal reports, and instructions that outline what data was shared, when it was shared, and the format or system used for the transfer.
Any policies, procedures, guidelines, or frameworks that govern how [Authority name] requests, obtains, stores, handles, or uses DVA client information. This includes documents that detail the criteria for approving access to such data, any consent or authorization processes, security controls, and retention or destruction policies.
Copies of any ethics committee approvals, privacy impact assessments, internal review board decisions, or other documents that reflect deliberations or authorizations for obtaining DVA client information. This includes records that show the agency considered the ethical, legal, or privacy implications of receiving or using DVA client data.
Documents that outline the intended uses or practical applications of the DVA client data, such as project proposals, business cases, internal strategy papers, or briefings that explain why [Authority name] sought access to this information, how it was intended to be integrated into the agency’s operations, and any expected outcomes or benefits.
A representative sample (in a suitably de-identified or redacted form) of the data or data fields received, so long as providing this sample does not breach any exemption under the FOI Act. The purpose is to understand the nature and granularity of the information shared, without disclosing identifiable personal details.
If the only data [Authority name] received pertains solely to data linked to the Centrelink Confirmation eServices (CCeS) arrangements as described at https://www.servicesaustralia.gov.au/cen..., and there were no other forms of DVA data shared, then no CCeS-related data needs to be provided under this request.
I emphasize that I am not authorizing the transfer of this FOI request to the Department of Veterans’ Affairs or any other agency. If [Authority name] holds the requested information, it should provide it directly. If there are parts of this request that [Name of Agency] does not understand or believes are not held, I invite you to contact me to clarify or refine the scope under section 24AB of the FOI Act, rather than initiating a transfer. However, I do not consent to the transfer of this request to another entity. The FOI Act places the onus on agencies to process requests for documents they hold, and I expect [Authority name] to meet its responsibilities in this regard.
I note that the statutory timeframe for processing FOI requests is 30 days from the date of receipt. I do not consent to any extension of time due to internal reduced activity periods, holiday stand-down periods, or other internal operational issues. If [Authority name] considers that it cannot meet the 30-day timeframe, it may seek an extension from the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner as provided under section 15AB of the FOI Act. I request to be notified if such an application is made.
If you consider any part of this request too broad or complex, please contact me promptly to discuss refining its scope. I remain willing to consider adjustments that will assist efficient processing, provided that they occur within the statutory timeframe and do not undermine the substance of what I am seeking.
I believe that disclosure of these documents is in the public interest, as it promotes transparency and accountability in how government agencies access and use sensitive personal information about veterans. Should you consider charges applicable, I request that you exercise your discretion to reduce or waive them, given the importance of the matter and its alignment with the principles of open government and public accountability.
I look forward to receiving your acknowledgment and decision within the statutory timeframe. Please contact me at the details below if you require further clarification.
Yours sincerely,
Nosey
OFFICIAL
Dear Nosey,
Thank you for your email of 14 December 2024.
We believe that you intend to submit a Freedom of Information (FOI)
request under the FOI Act 1982 (Cth). We wish to clarify the intended
application of your request as it appears that an incomplete template was
used in making this request as evident by the multiple instances of ‘[Name
of Agency]’ being used.
We are unable to process your request until you clarify if your request
was intended for the Office of the Commonwealth Ombudsman. Under section
15(1) of the FOI Act, a person has the right to request documents of an
agency. However, based on your request is it not clear if it is directed
to our Office and documents we hold.
If you seek documents from our Office, please submit a request in which it
is clear that you seek documents held by us. The 30 day processing
timeframe will start once our Office has received a valid FOI request from
you.
Please do not hesitate to reach out if you would like to discuss or
require assistance to lodge a valid FOI request.
Kind regards,
Commonwealth Ombudsman’s Office
Defence, Investigations, ACT Ombudsman, Legal
1300 362 072
[1][email address]
[2]ombudsman.gov.au
Level 5, 14 Childers St Canberra ACT 2600
Proud to be working on the lands of the Gadigal people of the Eora
Nation. The Office of the Commonwealth Ombudsman acknowledges the
Traditional Owners of Country throughout Australia and their continuing
connection to land, culture and community. We pay our respects to Elders
past and present.
The Office of the Commonwealth Ombudsman acknowledges the traditional
owners of country throughout Australia and their continuing connection to
land, culture and community. We pay our respects to elders past and
present.
References
Visible links
1. mailto:[email address]
2. http://www.ombudsman.gov.au/
Dear FOI Officer,
Thank you for your email of 17 December 2024. I acknowledge that my initial request may have appeared to be a template and did not clearly specify that I am seeking documents held by the Office of the Commonwealth Ombudsman. I confirm that I intended to direct this request to your agency, and I now clarify the scope accordingly.
I wish to request access to documents held by the Office of the Commonwealth Ombudsman, under the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (Cth), concerning the sharing of personal information originating from the Department of Veterans’ Affairs (DVA) over the last ten years. Specifically, I am seeking:
Any documents that detail the sharing of personal or service-related information about veterans or their dependents, sourced from the DVA, that the Office of the Commonwealth Ombudsman has either received or provided. This may include memoranda of understanding, service-level agreements, emails, letters, meeting minutes, file transfer logs, internal reports, or similar materials that outline the nature, timing, and format of any such data exchange between the DVA and your Office.
Policies, procedures, guidelines, or frameworks that govern how the Office of the Commonwealth Ombudsman requests, accesses, stores, handles, or uses data originating from the DVA. This includes documents that detail the criteria for obtaining DVA client data, any consent or authorisation processes, security measures, and data retention or destruction policies.
Copies of any privacy impact assessments, ethics committee approvals, or internal review board decisions your Office may have undertaken in relation to the receipt or handling of DVA client data. In particular, I am interested in any documents that demonstrate how privacy, legal, and ethical considerations were addressed.
Records outlining the intended purposes or practical applications for any DVA client data accessed by your agency. This could include internal strategy papers, briefings, project proposals, or reports detailing why your Office sought such information, how it was integrated into your operations, and any expected benefits or outcomes.
A suitably de-identified or redacted sample of the kind of data fields received (provided that this does not trigger any exemptions under the FOI Act), to understand the nature and granularity of the shared information. If the only data your Office received relates solely to Centrelink Confirmation eServices (CCeS) arrangements, and if no other DVA data was exchanged, then it is not necessary to provide any CCeS-related data.
If you find any part of this request too broad or complex, please contact me promptly to discuss refining its scope. I remain willing to make reasonable adjustments within the statutory timeframe while preserving the substantive nature of what I am seeking.
I believe disclosure is in the public interest, as it promotes transparency and accountability regarding how sensitive personal information about veterans is handled by government agencies. If you consider charges applicable, I respectfully request that you waive or reduce them, given the importance of this information to public understanding and accountability.
I look forward to receiving your acknowledgement and progressing this request within the statutory timeframe. Please let me know if you require any further clarification.
Yours sincerely,
Nosey
OFFICIAL
Our ref: FOI-2024-80054
Dear Nosey
I acknowledge receipt of your email dated 18 December 2024 to the Office
of the Commonwealth Ombudsman (the Office), in which you requested access
to documents under the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (FOI Act). Your
request for documents was in the following terms:
1. I wish to request access to documents held by the Office of the
Commonwealth Ombudsman, under the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (Cth),
concerning the sharing of personal information originating from the
Department of Veterans’ Affairs (DVA) over the last ten years.
Specifically, I am seeking:
2. Any documents that detail the sharing of personal or
service-related information about veterans or their dependents, sourced
from the DVA, that the Office of the Commonwealth Ombudsman has either
received or provided. This may include memoranda of understanding,
service-level agreements, emails, letters, meeting minutes, file transfer
logs, internal reports, or similar materials that outline the nature,
timing, and format of any such data exchange between the DVA and your
Office.
3. Policies, procedures, guidelines, or frameworks that govern how
the Office of the Commonwealth Ombudsman requests, accesses, stores,
handles, or uses data originating from the DVA. This includes documents
that detail the criteria for obtaining DVA client data, any consent or
authorisation processes, security measures, and data retention or
destruction policies.
4. Copies of any privacy impact assessments, ethics committee
approvals, or internal review board decisions your Office may have
undertaken in relation to the receipt or handling of DVA client data. In
particular, I am interested in any documents that demonstrate how privacy,
legal, and ethical considerations were addressed.
5. Records outlining the intended purposes or practical applications
for any DVA client data accessed by your agency. This could include
internal strategy papers, briefings, project proposals, or reports
detailing why your Office sought such information, how it was integrated
into your operations, and any expected benefits or outcomes.
6. A suitably de-identified or redacted sample of the kind of data
fields received (provided that this does not trigger any exemptions under
the FOI Act), to understand the nature and granularity of the shared
information. If the only data your Office received relates solely to
Centrelink Confirmation eServices (CCeS) arrangements, and if no other DVA
data was exchanged, then it is not necessary to provide any CCeS-related
data.
The nature of the requested information is very broad. Based on our
preliminary assessment of the likely document holdings, we consider this
request will likely capture a significant volume of documents involving
substantial manual labour. Your request as currently framed would require
our Office to review individual DVA complaint case files over a 10-year
period. In addition, once in-scope files are located, our Office would
need to consult with individuals regarding their personal records.
To ensure the Office can effectively process your request, and to avoid a
practical refusal reason arising, I write to you to seek your agreement to
revise the scope of your request as follows:
o To exclude personal information about individual veterans or their
dependents?
o To exclude individual DVA complaint files from the scope of your
request (that is where we have received a complaint about DVA from an
individual)?
o To limit your request to governance documents pertaining to
information sharing arrangements between our Office and the DVA?
Documents may include:
o Policies, procedures, guidelines, frameworks that govern how the
Office of the Commonwealth Ombudsman requests, accesses, stores,
handles, or uses data originating from the DVA.
o Memorandum of understanding with DVA.
o Service-level agreement/s with the DVA.
Please let us know whether you agree to the above changes in scope by
close of business Thursday, 2 January 2025.
The Office’s Privacy Policy sets out how the Commonwealth Ombudsman (and
ACT Ombudsman) handles of collects, holds, uses, or discloses personal
information. This would include how our Office handles personal
information obtained from the DVA. For more information, please find link
here to the Privacy Policy - [1]Privacy-Policy-September-2019.pdf.
Kind regards
Carolina
Senior Legal Officer
Defence, Investigations, ACT & Legal Branch
1300 362 072
[2]A black and white logo [3][email address]
Description automatically
generated [4]ombudsman.gov.au
Level 5, 14 Childers St Canberra ACT 2600
Proud to be working on the lands of the Kaurna people. The Office of the
Commonwealth Ombudsman acknowledges the Traditional Owners of Country
throughout Australia and their continuing connection to land, culture and
community. We pay our respects to Elders past and present.
The Office of the Commonwealth Ombudsman acknowledges the traditional
owners of country throughout Australia and their continuing connection to
land, culture and community. We pay our respects to elders past and
present.
References
Visible links
1. https://www.ombudsman.gov.au/__data/asse...
3. mailto:[email address]
4. http://www.ombudsman.gov.au/
OFFICIAL
Carolina Nebbiai would like to recall the message, "FOI-2024-80054 - Acknowledgement and Clarification of Scope [SEC=OFFICIAL]".
The Office of the Commonwealth Ombudsman acknowledges the traditional owners of country throughout Australia and their continuing connection to land, culture and community. We pay our respects to elders past and present.
OFFICIAL
Our ref: FOI-2024-80054
Dear Nosey
I acknowledge receipt of your email dated 18 December 2024 to the Office
of the Commonwealth Ombudsman (the Office), in which you requested access
to documents under the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (FOI Act). Your
request for documents was in the following terms:
1. I wish to request access to documents held by the Office of the
Commonwealth Ombudsman, under the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (Cth),
concerning the sharing of personal information originating from the
Department of Veterans’ Affairs (DVA) over the last ten years.
Specifically, I am seeking:
2. Any documents that detail the sharing of personal or
service-related information about veterans or their dependents, sourced
from the DVA, that the Office of the Commonwealth Ombudsman has either
received or provided. This may include memoranda of understanding,
service-level agreements, emails, letters, meeting minutes, file transfer
logs, internal reports, or similar materials that outline the nature,
timing, and format of any such data exchange between the DVA and your
Office.
3. Policies, procedures, guidelines, or frameworks that govern how
the Office of the Commonwealth Ombudsman requests, accesses, stores,
handles, or uses data originating from the DVA. This includes documents
that detail the criteria for obtaining DVA client data, any consent or
authorisation processes, security measures, and data retention or
destruction policies.
4. Copies of any privacy impact assessments, ethics committee
approvals, or internal review board decisions your Office may have
undertaken in relation to the receipt or handling of DVA client data. In
particular, I am interested in any documents that demonstrate how privacy,
legal, and ethical considerations were addressed.
5. Records outlining the intended purposes or practical applications
for any DVA client data accessed by your agency. This could include
internal strategy papers, briefings, project proposals, or reports
detailing why your Office sought such information, how it was integrated
into your operations, and any expected benefits or outcomes.
6. A suitably de-identified or redacted sample of the kind of data
fields received (provided that this does not trigger any exemptions under
the FOI Act), to understand the nature and granularity of the shared
information. If the only data your Office received relates solely to
Centrelink Confirmation eServices (CCeS) arrangements, and if no other DVA
data was exchanged, then it is not necessary to provide any CCeS-related
data.
The nature of the requested information is very broad. Based on our
preliminary assessment of the likely document holdings, we consider this
request will likely capture a significant volume of documents involving
substantial manual labour. Your request as currently framed would require
our Office to review individual DVA complaint case files over a 10-year
period. In addition, once in-scope files are located, our Office would
need to consult with individuals regarding their personal records.
To ensure the Office can effectively process your request, and to avoid a
practical refusal reason arising, I write to you to seek your agreement to
revise the scope of your request as follows:
o To exclude personal information about individual veterans or their
dependents?
o To exclude individual DVA complaint files from the scope of your
request (that is where we have received a complaint about DVA from an
individual)?
o To limit your request to governance documents pertaining to
information sharing arrangements between our Office and the DVA?
Documents may include:
o Policies, procedures, guidelines, frameworks that govern how the
Office of the Commonwealth Ombudsman requests, accesses, stores,
handles, or uses data originating from the DVA.
o Memorandum of understanding with DVA.
o Service-level agreement/s with the DVA.
Please let us know whether you agree to the above changes in scope by
close of business Thursday, 2 January 2025.
The Office’s Privacy Policy sets out how the Commonwealth Ombudsman (and
ACT Ombudsman) handles of collects, holds, uses, or discloses personal
information. This would include how our Office handles personal
information obtained from the DVA. For more information, please find link
here to the Privacy Policy - [1]Privacy-Policy-September-2019.pdf.
Kind regards
Carolina
Senior Legal Officer
Defence, Investigations, ACT & Legal Branch
1300 362 072
[2]A black and white logo [3][email address]
Description automatically
generated [4]ombudsman.gov.au
Level 5, 14 Childers St Canberra ACT 2600
Proud to be working on the lands of the Kaurna people. The Office of the
Commonwealth Ombudsman acknowledges the Traditional Owners of Country
throughout Australia and their continuing connection to land, culture and
community. We pay our respects to Elders past and present.
The Office of the Commonwealth Ombudsman acknowledges the traditional
owners of country throughout Australia and their continuing connection to
land, culture and community. We pay our respects to elders past and
present.
References
Visible links
1. https://www.ombudsman.gov.au/__data/asse...
3. mailto:[email address]
4. http://www.ombudsman.gov.au/
Dear Carolina,
Thank you for your correspondence dated 20 December 2024, regarding my Freedom of Information (FOI) request. I appreciate your effort to clarify the scope, but I must reiterate that my request is focused on high-level, systemic data sharing arrangements between the Department of Veterans’ Affairs (DVA) and the Office of the Commonwealth Ombudsman, not individual case files or complaints.
To ensure there is no misunderstanding:
Exclusion of Personal Information and Complaint Files
I confirm that my request does not seek personal information about individual veterans or their dependents, nor does it seek access to individual DVA complaint case files where the Office has acted as a point of contact for a veteran’s complaint. For example, if SMN Smith lodged a complaint with the Ombudsman regarding DVA treatment, those documents should be excluded.
Scope of Requested Documents
The focus of my request remains on widespread or systematic data sharing arrangements and governance documents between the DVA and the Ombudsman’s Office. Specifically, this includes:
Service-Level Agreements (SLAs) and Memoranda of Understanding (MOUs): Any formal agreements governing the sharing of DVA client data.
Governance Documents: Policies, procedures, guidelines, or frameworks detailing how DVA client data is accessed, stored, handled, or used by the Office.
Privacy and Ethical Deliberations: Any privacy impact assessments, internal reviews, or documents reflecting considerations of the legal, privacy, or ethical implications of handling DVA client data.
Intended Uses: Internal strategy papers, project proposals, or reports outlining how DVA client data is integrated into the Office’s operations and the anticipated outcomes.
Nature of the Request
This request pertains to general practices and arrangements regarding data sharing and does not extend to individual-level data unless it directly pertains to widespread data sharing practices or agreements.
I trust that this clarification sufficiently addresses the concerns you have raised. I do not consent to narrowing the request further, as the above exclusions already ensure that my request avoids unnecessary manual review of individual complaint files or personal information.
I look forward to your response and request that my application be processed within the statutory timeframe. Should you have any further questions or require additional clarification, please contact me in writing.
Yours sincerely,
Nosey
OFFICIAL
Thank you for contacting the Commonwealth Ombudsman Information Access
Inbox.
The Office is currently closed for the Christmas period in accordance with
the whole of Government standdown period, and will re-open on Thursday 2
January 2025. The inbox is not currently being monitored and your
correspondence will not be responded to until the Office re-opens.
Unless we hear from you otherwise any FOI requests received during this
period will be considered as being received on 2 January 2025. If you do
not agree to this approach please let the Office know.
For more information about making a Freedom of Information request, or to
submit an application online please visit our website at
[1]https://www.ombudsman.gov.au/Our-respons....
The Office of the Commonwealth Ombudsman acknowledges the traditional
owners of country throughout Australia and their continuing connection to
land, culture and community. We pay our respects to elders past and
present.
References
Visible links
1. https://www.ombudsman.gov.au/Our-respons...
noseyrosey left an annotation ()
With the clock paused for clarification on 20 December 2024 and resuming on 2 January 2025, the new decision deadline is 29 January 2025, accounting for the time already elapsed and the consultation period.