New Zealand’s Privacy Commissioner releases a paper on biometric regulation

New Zealand’s Office of the Privacy Commissioner (OPC) has released a position paper setting out how the Privacy Act regulates biometrics.  The increasing role of biometric technologies in the lives of New Zealanders has led to calls for greater regulation of biometrics. In a statement releasing the paper, the OPC said, ‘[it] believes that the privacy principles and the regulatory tools in the Privacy Act are currently sufficient to regulate the use of biometrics from a privacy perspective.’  The paper is intended to inform decision-making about biometrics by all agencies covered by the Privacy Act, in both the public and private sectors. This position paper will be reviewed six months after publication, in consultation with key stakeholders, to assess its impact and whether any further steps are required. Read the OPC’s summary of key issues or the full position paper.