Education Ministry Breached Privacy Law Over Special Needs Student Data Leak
Translated & summarized from Globes by baba
Israel's Privacy Protection Authority ruled the Ministry of Education violated privacy laws after sensitive data on 21,000 special needs students was leaked. The breach included personal and medical details and occurred before new penalties could be applied. The authority investigated after media reports in March 2025 and found security deficiencies. The leaked data was intended for a digital form to aid student placement.
The story in 6 lines · by baba
- The Ministry of Education violated Israel's Privacy Protection Law due to a data leak.
- Sensitive personal and medical data of 21,000 special needs students was compromised.
- The leak occurred before a law amendment allowing financial penalties, so no fine was issued.
- The Privacy Protection Authority launched an investigation in March 2025 following media reports.
- The data included identifying details, religious affiliation, and specific disability information.
- Ministry employees created an open-access form that led to the unauthorized data access.
Israel's Privacy Protection Authority has determined that the Ministry of Education violated the Privacy Protection Law following a leak of sensitive information concerning approximately 21,000 special needs students. The breach, which involved personal and medical details including students' disabilities and religious affiliation, occurred before a recent amendment to the law that allows for financial penalties. Consequently, while a violation was established, no fine was imposed.
The authority launched its investigation in March 2025 after media reports surfaced about the data leak. The investigation revealed deficiencies in the Ministry of Education's information security, leading to the conclusion that the ministry had breached Article 17 of the Privacy Protection Law and other related regulations. The leaked data was extracted from a ministry system and compiled into a file linked to an open-access form for educational institutions.
According to the findings, ministry employees sought to create a digital form in May 2024 to streamline the placement process for special needs students in the Haredi sector. In the process, they extracted sensitive personal and identifying information from a ministry system. This information was then linked to a form intended for educational institutions, but access permissions were left open, allowing unauthorized individuals to obtain the sensitive data.
