VancouverMETRO VANCOUVER NEWS
B.C. ends public access to government employee directory
B.C. has removed public access to its government directory, citing cybersecurity and employee privacy concerns, and says a revised contact page is coming.
The B.C. government is ending public access to its employee directory, which had allowed users to search provincial employees’ names, departments, work emails and work phone numbers.
The Ministry of Citizen Services said the directory was intended to support legitimate contact with government, but the information could also be used by cyber-threat actors. It said the province faces hundreds of cyberattacks daily and that artificial-intelligence tools have made it easier to harvest public data and produce targeted messages. The ministry said it received advice from law enforcement, including RCMP, to close the directory.
A replacement page will include senior executive contacts for all ministries and direct users to ministry, service and media contacts, the ministry said. It said the change is intended to reduce public exposure of individual employee contact details while maintaining access to government.
Langley-Willowbrook MLA and government-services critic Jody Toor said a directory of this kind has existed since the 1930s. She argued the public should be able to understand government structure and accountability while employee privacy is protected.