B.C. FOI complaints surge as AI tools drive more review requests
Michael Harvey said complaints rose 60% to about 3,900 as AI chatbots make it easier to draft FOI disputes.
- On April 24, Privacy Commissioner Michael Harvey told the Select Standing Committee on Finance and Government Services that FOI complaints surged 60% this past year, reaching roughly 3,900 total files, which he described as a "hockey stick" jump.
- Harvey suspects an "unexpected surge" stems from citizens using AI chatbots to generate complaints after receiving denied FOI responses, though he currently lacks hard evidence to quantify this impact.
- Privacy and access complaints rose 86%, FOI reviews increased 50%, and privacy breach reports grew 28%; Harvey's office raised its file-closure rate by 36%, though he noted this increase is insufficient to handle the volume.
- Service Minister Diana Gibson introduced legislation in Feb. to manage request volumes, but Critics and Opposition MLAs argue the bill grants officials too much leeway to reject FOI requests; Harvey disagrees, stating it will not curtail access.
- Harvey advocates for a "cultural change" to "transparency by default" as the ultimate solution to reduce FOI request needs, and he plans to consider tracking AI-generated complaints to better understand the impact on his office's operations.
6 Articles
6 Articles
B.C. FOI complaints surge as AI tools drive more review requests - Creston Valley Advance
While the government works to overhaul the rules around freedom of information (FOI) requests, Information and Privacy Commissioner Michael Harvey says the system is experiencing an “unexpected surge” in review requests, and he believes it is because people are relying on artificial intelligence (AI) to write up their disputes for them. “In conversations we’ve had with other client-facing organizations of all sorts across the public body, we’re …
B.C. FOI complaints surge as AI tools drive more review requests - Fort St. James Caledonia Courier
While the government works to overhaul the rules around freedom of information (FOI) requests, Information and Privacy Commissioner Michael Harvey says the system is experiencing an “unexpected surge” in review requests, and he believes it is because people are relying on artificial intelligence (AI) to write up their disputes for them. “In conversations we’ve had with other client-facing organizations of all sorts across the public body, we’re …
B.C. FOI complaints surge as AI tools drive more review requests - Grand Forks Gazette
While the government works to overhaul the rules around freedom of information (FOI) requests, Information and Privacy Commissioner Michael Harvey says the system is experiencing an “unexpected surge” in review requests, and he believes it is because people are relying on artificial intelligence (AI) to write up their disputes for them. “In conversations we’ve had with other client-facing organizations of all sorts across the public body, we’re …
B.C. FOI complaints surge as AI tools drive more review requests - Vanderhoof Omineca Express
While the government works to overhaul the rules around freedom of information (FOI) requests, Information and Privacy Commissioner Michael Harvey says the system is experiencing an “unexpected surge” in review requests, and he believes it is because people are relying on artificial intelligence (AI) to write up their disputes for them. “In conversations we’ve had with other client-facing organizations of all sorts across the public body, we’re …
B.C. FOI complaints surge as AI tools drive more review requests - Northern Sentinel
While the government works to overhaul the rules around freedom of information (FOI) requests, Information and Privacy Commissioner Michael Harvey says the system is experiencing an “unexpected surge” in review requests, and he believes it is because people are relying on artificial intelligence (AI) to write up their disputes for them. “In conversations we’ve had with other client-facing organizations of all sorts across the public body, we’re …
B.C. FOI complaints surge as AI tools drive more review requests - Barriere North Thompson Star
While the government works to overhaul the rules around freedom of information (FOI) requests, Information and Privacy Commissioner Michael Harvey says the system is experiencing an “unexpected surge” in review requests, and he believes it is because people are relying on artificial intelligence (AI) to write up their disputes for them. “In conversations we’ve had with other client-facing organizations of all sorts across the public body, we’re …
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