This is an HTML version of an attachment to the Freedom of Information request 'MyGov Security SMS Code Cost'.



If not delivered return to PO Box 7820 Canberra BC ACT 2610 
 
 
10 December 2018 
 
 
 
 
 
Our reference:  LEX 40654 
 
 
Mr Josh Morrison 
Right to Know  
 
Only by email: xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx@xxxxxxxxxxx.xxx.xx 
 
 
Dear Mr Morrison 
Decision on your Freedom of Information Request 
I refer to your request, dated 5 November 2018 and received by the Department of Human 
Services (department) on the same date, for access under the Freedom of Information Act 
1982 
(FOI Act) to the following documents:  
Please take this as my request under the relevant acts for al invoices or transactional 
data showing the costs of the SMS security (2 Factor Authentication) for the myGov 
Portal for each month from inception of the tool. 
My decision 
I have decided to refuse your request under section 24(1) of the FOI Act because a 'practical 
refusal reason' still exists under section 24AA of the FOI Act.  
I am satisfied under section 24AA(1)(b) that your request does not provide sufficient 
information to enable the department to identify the documents you are seeking, as required 
by section 15(2)(b) of the FOI Act. 
The reasons for my decision, including the relevant sections of the FOI Act, are set out in 
Attachment A
You can ask for a review of our decision 
If you disagree with the decision you can ask for a review. There are two ways you can do 
this. You can ask for an internal review from within the department, or an external review by 
the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner. You do not have to pay for reviews of 
decisions. See Attachment B for more information about how to arrange a review.  
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Further assistance 
If you have any questions please email xxx.xxxxx.xxxx@xxxxxxxxxxxxx.xxx.xx.  
Yours sincerely 
 
 
Ellen 
Authorised FOI Decision Maker 
Freedom of Information Team 
Employment Law and Freedom of Information Branch | Legal Services Division  
Department of Human Services 
PAGE 2 OF 7 
 
Department of Human Services 



If not delivered return to PO Box 7820 Canberra BC ACT 2610 
Attachment A 
REASONS FOR DECISION 
What you requested 
On 5 November 2018, you made an FOI request in the following terms:  
Please take this as my request under the relevant acts for al invoices or transactional 
data showing the costs of the SMS security (2 Factor Authentication) for the myGov 
Portal for each month from inception of the tool. 
Request consultation process 
On 9 November 2018, I entered into formal consultation with you under section 24AB(2) of 
the FOI Act, as the following practical refusal reasons existed in relation to your request:  
  the terms of your original request did not satisfy the requirement in section 15(2)(b) of 
the FOI Act in that your request did not provide such information as was reasonably 
necessary to enable the department to identify the documents that you were seeking; 
and  
  to the extent that some of the documents you were seeking could be identified, 
processing your request would substantially and unreasonably divert the resources of 
the department from its other operations.  
I provided you with an opportunity to consult with the department to revise your request to 
remove the practical refusal reasons. I also advised that, should a practical refusal reason 
remain following the consultation process I would be required to refuse your request.  
Specifically, I suggested you consider revising the scope of your request by addressing the 
practical refusal reasons by:  
  providing additional information to specify the legislation you are referring to when 
you use the phrase ‘under the relevant acts’;  
  identifying whose invoices you are seeking and to whom they are addressed;  
  specifying what ‘transactional data’ is referring to; and 
  identifying what you mean by ‘tool’. 
On 12 November 2018, you provided a response to the departments’ consultation email and 
advised the following:  
I do not wish to modify the request in any way.  
What I took into account 
In reaching my decision I took into account: 
  your original request dated 5 November 2018;  
  correspondence with you regarding this request on 9 November 2018 and 12 
November 2018; 
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  consultations with departmental officers about: 
o  the nature of the requested documents; and 
o  the department's operating environment and functions; 
  guidelines issued by the Australian Information Commissioner under section 93A of 
the FOI Act (Guidelines); and 
  the FOI Act. 
 
Reasons for my decisions 
I am authorised to make decisions under section 23(1) of the FOI Act. 
Following the request consultation process outlined above, in accordance with section 
24(1)(b) of the FOI Act, I am satisfied that a practical refusal reason still exists in that you 
have not provided sufficient information to identify the documents you are requesting.  
The reasons for my decision are outlined below. 
Practical refusal reason 
Section 24AA of the FOI Act provides that a practical refusal reason exists in relation to a 
request for a document if the request does not satisfy the requirement in section 15(2)(b) of 
the FOI Act (identification of documents). 
Section 15(2)(b) of the FOI Act provides that a valid FOI request must: 
provide such information concerning the document as is reasonably necessary to 
enable a responsible officer of the agency, or the Minister, to identify it. 
Why your request does not satisfy the requirement in section 15(2)(b) of the FOI Act 
In your email dated 12 November 2018, you indicated that you do not wish to revise your 
request. 
Therefore, your request still does not provide enough information as is reasonably necessary 
to enable the department to identify those documents.  
For the same reasons as explained in my section 24AB consultation letter dated 9 November 
2018, your request does not identify the types of documents you are seeking. Specifically, it 
is unclear what you mean by:  
  ‘the relevant acts’ – the department is the delivery agency for the Centrelink, Child 
Support and Medicare programs and interacts with a range of Commonwealth 
legislation, including the Social Security Act 1991, Child Support (Registration and 
Collection) Act 1998, Health Insurance Act 1973
, and National Health Act 1953
Accordingly, it is not clear which legislation you are referring to when you use the 
phrase ‘relevant acts’;  
  ‘all invoices’ – it is not clear whether you are requesting invoices relating to the 
payment for particular goods or services, and if so, for what and to whom the invoices 
are issued;   
PAGE 4 OF 7 
 
Department of Human Services 

  ‘transactional data’ – this term does not identify a document and could refer to 
payment transactions between the department and another party (for example, 
invoices, bills, quotes and evidence of payments) or any other kind of transfer of 
information (for example, information detailing when an SMS message is sent and 
details of the person and phone number the message was sent to);  
  ‘costs’ – this term is not clear and could be interpreted to refer to a number of 
different types of costs, including tangible and intangible costs. For example, it is not 
clear whether you are seeking delivery costs, implementation costs, telephony costs 
for the SMS authentication, operational costs of a particular software required, human 
resources costs; and  
  ‘for each month from inception of the tool’- you have not referred to a date range and 
this phrase is unclear. The term ‘tool’ could refer to the SMS Factor Authentication, 
myGov or another resource used by the department. In addition, the use of the term 
‘inception’ could mean: when the tool was first created; when the department first 
proposed to use the tool; when the department first obtained the tool; when the tool 
was first launched to the public; or, some other point in time.  
Conclusion 
In summary, I am satisfied that your request does not satisfy the requirement in 
section 15(2)(b) of the FOI Act, in that it does not provide sufficient information to enable the 
department to identify the documents you are seeking. 
I have found that a practical refusal reason exists in relation to your request for access to the 
documents.  Accordingly, I have decided to refuse your request under section 24(1) of the 
FOI Act. 
 
PAGE 5 OF 7 
 
Department of Human Services 



If not delivered return to PO Box 7820 Canberra BC ACT 2610 
 
Attachment B 
 
 

INFORMATION ON RIGHTS OF REVIEW 
 
FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT 1982 
 
Asking for a full explanation of a freedom of information (FOI) decision 

Before you ask for a formal review of a FOI decision, you can contact us to discuss your 
request. We will explain the decision to you. This gives you a chance to correct 
misunderstandings.  
Asking for a formal review of an FOI decision 
If you still believe a decision is incorrect, the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (FOI Act
gives you the right to apply for a review of the decision. Under sections 54 and 54L of the 
FOI Act, you can apply for a review of an FOI decision by: 
1.  an Internal Review Officer in the Department of Human Services (the department); 
and/or 
2.  the Australian Information Commissioner. 
Note 1: There are no fees for these reviews. 
Applying for an internal review by an Internal Review Officer 
If you apply for internal review, a different decision maker to the departmental delegate who 
made the original decision will carry out the review. The Internal Review Officer will consider 
all aspects of the original decision and decide whether it should change. An application for 
internal review must be: 
  made in writing 
  made within 30 days of receiving this letter 
  sent to the address at the top of the first page of this letter. 
Note 2: You do not need to fill in a form. However, it is a good idea to set out any relevant 
submissions you would like the Internal Review Officer to further consider, and your reasons 
for disagreeing with the decision.  
Applying for external review by the Australian Information Commissioner 
If you do not agree with the original decision or the internal review decision, you can ask the 
Australian Information Commissioner to review the decision.  
If you do not receive a decision from an Internal Review Officer in the department within 30 
days of applying, you can ask the Australian Information Commissioner for a review of the 
original FOI decision.  
You will have 60 days to apply in writing for a review by the Australian Information 
Commissioner.  
PAGE 6 OF 7 

You can lodge your application
Online: 
www.oaic.gov.au   
Post:    
Australian Information Commissioner 
 
 
GPO Box 5218 
SYDNEY NSW 2001  
Email:   
xxxxxxxxx@xxxx.xxx.xx 
 
Note 3: The Office of the Australian Information Commissioner generally prefers FOI 
applicants to seek internal review before applying for external review by the Australian 
Information Commissioner. 
Important: 
  If you are applying online, the application form the 'Merits Review Form' is available 
at www.oaic.gov.au.  
  If you have one, you should include with your application a copy of the Department of 
Human Services' decision on your FOI request  
  Include your contact details 
  Set out your reasons for objecting to the department's decision. 
Complaints to the Australian Information Commissioner and Commonwealth 
Ombudsman  

Australian Information Commissioner 
 
You may complain to the Australian Information Commissioner concerning action taken by 
an agency in the exercise of powers or the performance of functions under the FOI Act, 
There is no fee for making a complaint. A complaint to the Australian Information 
Commissioner must be made in writing. The Australian Information Commissioner's contact 
details are: 
 
Telephone:      1300 363 992 
Website:          www.oaic.gov.au  
 
Commonwealth Ombudsman 
 
You may also complain to the Commonwealth Ombudsman concerning action taken by an 
agency in the exercise of powers or the performance of functions under the FOI Act. There is 
no fee for making a complaint. A complaint to the Commonwealth Ombudsman may be 
made in person, by telephone or in writing. The Commonwealth Ombudsman's contact 
details are: 
 
Phone:             1300 362 072 
Website:          www.ombudsman.gov.au 
 
The Commonwealth Ombudsman generally prefers applicants to seek review before 
complaining about a decision. 
 
PAGE 7 OF 7 
 
Department of Human Services