New Zealand's new privacy commissioner says he's disturbed by a "strange behavioural change" in what people do when they mistakenly receive personal information.
Privacy commissioner John Edwards told parliament's justice and electoral select committee on Thursday he thinks there's been a change over the last few years in what people do when they find something in their inbox, for example, that is not intended for them.
"No right minded member of the community would think when they stumbled across a wallet containing identifying details and $1000 that they had a right to keep that," Mr Edwards said.
"We are instilled as children with the moral obligation that we must return this to its rightful owner and not take advantage of that accident."
However, Mr Edwards said there seems to be an increasing trend that when somebody receives information mistakenly that they are "entitled to give some publicity to it or use it as a mechanism for obtaining some advantage or creating some stress or drama for the organisation with which they may be in conflict".
"I'm as disturbed by that I think as I am by the weakness at the other end," he said.
Mr Edwards started in his role as privacy commissioner this week.
