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Scotsnet

Welcome to Scotsnet - discuss all aspects of life in Scotland, including relocating, schools and local areas.

Scotland's People Screw Up

3 replies

GenieGenealogy · 10/08/2023 08:01

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-66448432

This story was top on the news last night and quite right. Scotlands's People is run by National Records of Scotland, part of the Scottish government. Anyone interested in their family history across the world can look at records of births, deaths and marriages on there (at a price) and it's widely used by the genealogy community.

They allowed general access to the Adoption Register showing the new surnames of adopted children, as recently as 2022. This register is closed - or should be - and these people should not come up on a general search which anyone can do.

This is the last in a line of NRS screw ups. This is the organisation which "delivered" the 2021 census (in 2022) and could only achieve a 79% completion rate. Genealogists had to wait a whole year longer in Scotland to get access to the 1921 census compared with people in the rest of the UK. Scotland's People as a website is pay as you go compared with a flat monthly subscription and is really expensive. If you want to book a seat at the family history centre in Edinburgh, you have to do it weeks in advance.

The whole thing is a complete disaster and it'll be the usual "lessons will be learned" and nothing will change.

Parent and child

Adopted children's names were disclosed on Scotland's People website

The details now have been removed from a Scottish genealogy website over safety and privacy fears.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-66448432

OP posts:
BigBoysDontCry · 10/08/2023 09:05

What a disgrace!

Apart from the general issues of cost compared to the rest of the UK, to compromise the safety of vulnerable children and adults is criminal. That makes me really angry.

I didn't return the census which I feel sorry for for future researchers, but scotgov cannot be trusted with our sensitive data.

GenieGenealogy · 10/08/2023 09:23

It'll all be "lessons have been learned" though as per usual won't it.

OP posts:
User43671481 · 10/08/2023 14:37

I saw this and thought what a lot of stress that’ll have caused for adopted children and parents who have adopted, awful.

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