Chancellor of Justice finds permit agency broke online access law

Finland’s Chancellor of Justice has found that the Permit and Supervisory Agency broke the law by requiring electronic identification to view online application documents containing personal data, Yle reports.

In a decision issued on July 31, the Chancellor of Justice said the agency cannot generally require electronic identification to access information available through a public digital service unless a specific law expressly authorises it.

The issue arose after an agency official filed a complaint about the authority’s practices, including its handling of environmental permit applications. The agency did not publish the documents directly online, but released them only after users completed electronic identification.

The agency said the requirement made its work easier because applications under the Environmental Protection Act and the Water Act contain large amounts of personal data, and removing that information would have been time-consuming.

However, the Chancellor of Justice said requiring identification would require an amendment to the law. Such legislation would allow the practice to be assessed against national rules, European Union regulations and obligations arising from international agreements binding on Finland.

The decision was sent to the Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of the Environment, which can consider whether the law should be amended because of the practical problems raised by the agency.

The Environmental Protection Act and the Water Act require all application documents to be made public.