Twelve missing kids in state care due to software issues

Twelve children in state care went missing for four days due to issues with the Department of Communities' record-keeping software, known as Assist. This was revealed in a report by Auditor General Caroline Spencer. The problem arose because the children's locations were not entered into Assist, but instead stored in a separate spreadsheet. Auditor General Spencer criticized the software, noting significant weaknesses that jeopardize the confidentiality and integrity of sensitive information. Assist has been in use since 2010 and holds personal data for over 180,000 children and their families. It also contains reports of abuse and details about victims and perpetrators. Spencer highlighted that 2,500 staff members had unrestricted access to all records, and the quality of data was poor, affecting the work of child protection workers. The case of the missing children occurred in early 2024 when it took four days for officials to locate them because their information was not in the Assist system. The Department of Communities has started plans to replace the software, but this process may not be completed until 2028. Meanwhile, the department has agreed to recommendations from Spencer's report and aims to improve its processes for managing information security and access controls. They expressed commitment to enhancing their capabilities in cybersecurity and data governance. Further comments from the department were not available.