Down in Australia there’s another example of a mistake when redacting a Word document before public release. Make sure you delete any links to redacted text, such as a Table of Contents or summary.
What caught our eye was the latest example of an oversight when redacting a document. Aussie public servants forgot to remove headings from the Table of Contents. The result was a glimpse into the unvarnished real-world advice given to politicians.
A standard Freedom of Information request is for a copy of the department advice to a minister based on the current economic situation and how the party’s election promises can be implemented. Released government documents are often heavily redacted, sometimes to an absurd extent, but in this case a key part was missed.
The headings in the Table of Contents revealed a little of that advice. As ABC journalist, Daniel Ziffer reports:
“The first version of the document sent to me on May 30 includes what is essentially a table of contents, for what is in the entirely redacted briefs discussing policy … “
I won’t bore our global readership with the details of Australian economic policy. It’s enough to say that the expert advice to politicians should be no surprise to anyone in almost any country, viz that a government needs to raise more revenue and some election promises can’t be done.
As Mr Ziffer notes:
“Treasury might not have wanted you to read these notes, but it should give taxpayers and citizens confidence it is holding fearless and tough conversations with the people making the decisions.”
Beware Tables of … when redacting
The lesson is to check any document you’re redacting for “Tables of …” and other things that might link to redacted content.
- Table of Contents
- Table of Figures
- Table of Equations
- Footnotes
- Endnotes
- Index
- Links that include text e.g. “See Tax Rate Increase” .
