SaS: Personal Data from Energy Aid Leaked, Sakova Should Be Held Accountable

Bratislava, 23 March (TASR) - A list containing the personal data of people who had requested to be excluded from the new energy aid scheme has probably been leaked from the Economy Ministry, opposition Freedom and Solidarity (SaS) representatives told a news conference on Monday. The list, which wasn't password-protected, includes the names and personal identification numbers of some 20,000 individuals. SaS representatives have described the leak as scandalous, calling on Economy Minister Denisa Sakova (Voice-SD) to explain it as soon as possible and to take personal responsibility for it. MP Karol Galek (SaS) stated that he anonymously received a USB drive containing unencrypted files with people's names, surnames and personal identification numbers. "The document's header states 'List of people who have expressed disagreement with providing personal data'. Paradoxically, this is a list of those who didn't want the state to record their data. Despite this, they've found themselves in a database that has apparently been leaked," he said. He warned that these are extremely sensitive data that could be easily misused. "Personal identification numbers are a key identifier - they can be misused to access medical records, financial services, or even when applying for loans. I'm asking: who has access to this data now?", said Galek. At the same time, Galek announced that SaS will file a complaint with the law-enforcement authorities, as well as with the Personal Data Protection Office. "I think that this is truly a fundamental, scandalous failure by the hitherto invisible minister Sakova. She should take personal responsibility and resign," stated the opposition MP. The liberals warned about the risks of the system back when it was approved, noted SaS vice-chair Marian Viskupic. "As early as September 2025, we warned that a massive register of households with sensitive data would be created and that misuse was a real threat. Today, I can say only one thing: everything has come true. We've had chaos, outages, a cyber-attack, and now a data leak," he said. Viskupic also pointed to the high costs of the entire energy aid scheme, which nevertheless has fundamental shortcomings. SaS leader Branislav Groeling described the situation as just another piece of evidence of the long-term chaos at the Economy Ministry. "Over the past two and a half years, we've witnessed one failure after another. The leak of the personal identification numbers of 20,000 people is absolutely unacceptable," he stressed, calling on the economy minister to explain the situation immediately. "At the same time, we'll file a criminal complaint and will consider initiating a no-confidence motion in her," added Groehling. ko/df