VICTORIA — Many British Columbia government organizations lack a strong enough line of defence against hacking, system threats and disruption, according to the province's auditor general.
Carol Bellringer asked 148 government organizations, including ministries, health authorities and colleges, to rate their general computing controls and audited 13 of those self-assessments.
Her report says general computing controls include management over who can access the systems, how to make changes and backup and recovery of systems.
Bellringer says many organizations assessed themselves at a higher level than in a previous report in 2013 — but of the 13 organizations she audited, 69 per cent over-rated their level of achievement.
She found most organizations lacked documented policies and procedures, which she says are hallmarks of strong general computing controls.
The Ministry of Technology, Innovation and Citizens' Services says the government takes very seriously the importance of general computing controls and will continue its efforts to strengthen security.
