Taipei prosecutors said Tuesday they are continuing their investigation into three current and former employees at the National Health Insurance Administration (NHIA) for allegedly collecting and leaking the personal data of government officials responsible for national security affairs.
Acting on a tipoff, authorities raided Monday the residences of the three suspects -- a woman surnamed Hsieh (?) who serves as a division chief at the NHIA, a male NHIA employee surnamed Lee (?), and a retired NHIA chief secretary identified by his last name Yeh (?).
All three were later brought in to the Taipei District Prosecutors Office for questioning in relation to alleged breaches of the National Intelligence Services Act.
On Tuesday, Lee and Yeh were released after the questioning, while Hsieh was required to post bail of NT$100,000 (US$3,281).
Hsieh and Lee allegedly used their clearance as NHIA employees to collect and leak the personal data of individuals stored on the National Health Insurance (NHI) system from 2009 to 2022, prosecutors said.
Yeh is believed to have instructed Hsieh and Lee to steal the information over a period of 13 years, they said.
However, the district prosecutors office did not release any details concerning the number of personal entries that may have been compromised, nor what was done with the data, except to say the investigation is ongoing.
According to a preliminary investigation by prosecutors, Lee was found to have logged into the NHI system on multiple occasions to look for personal data belonging to officials from the National Police Agency, Investigation Bureau, and intelligence officers in national security agencies.
Under the National Intelligence Service Act, the National Security Bureau, the Military Intelligence Bureau, and other government offices such as the National Police Agency and the Investigation Bureau are considered intelligence agencies.
The Act also stipulates that leaking or giving away the personal information of intelligence personnel is punishable by seven years imprisonment, and anywhere from three to 10 years for spying and collecting such information.
NHIA Director-General Lee Po-chang (???) on Tuesday said Hsieh and Lee have been transferred out of their original duties and restricted from using their clearance to access the NHI system during the investigation.
Lee Po-chang did not elaborate further about the case, except to remind NHIA employees to abide by the law in their use of the NHI system.
Source: Focus Taiwan News Channel