(D) Valid reasons for accessing confidential person information. Pursuant to the requirements of division (B)(2) of section 1347.15 of the Revised Code, this rule contains a list of valid reasons directly related to the department's exercise of its powers or duties, for which only employees of the department may access confidential personal information regardless of whether the personal information system is a manual system or computer system.
Performing the following functions, as part of the employee's assigned duties on behalf of the department, constitute valid reasons for authorized employees of the department to access confidential personal information:
(1) Responding to a public records request;(2) Responding to a request from an individual for the list of confidential personal information the department maintains on that individual;(3) Administering a constitutional provision or duty;(4) Administering a statutory provision or duty;(5) Administering an administrative rule provision or duty;(6) Complying with any state or federal program requirements;(7) Processing or payment of claims or otherwise administering a program with individual participants or beneficiaries;(9) Licensure or certification processes;(10) Investigation or law enforcement purposes;(11) Administrative hearings;(12) Litigation, complying with an order of the court, or subpoena;(13) Human resource matters (e.g., hiring, promotion, demotion, discharge, salary/ compensation issues, leave requests/issues, time card approvals/issues);(14) Complying with an executive order or policy;(15) Complying with a department policy or a state administrative policy issued by the Ohio department of administrative services, the office of budget and management or other similar state agency;(16) Complying with a collective bargaining agreement provision; or(17) Research in the furtherance of department specific programs in so far as allowed by statute.(F) Restricting and logging access to confidential personal information in computerized personal information systems. For personal information systems that are computer systems and contain confidential personal information, the department shall do the following:
(1) Access restrictions. Access to confidential personal information that is kept electronically shall require a password or other authentication measure.
(2) Acquisition of a new computer system. When the department acquires a new computer system that stores, manages or contains confidential personal information, the department shall include a mechanism for recording specific access by employees of the department to confidential personal information in the system.
(3) Upgrading existing computer systems. When the department modifies an existing computer system that stores, manages or contains confidential personal information, the department shall make a determination whether the modification constitutes an upgrade. Any upgrades to a computer system shall include a mechanism for recording specific access by department employees to confidential personal information in the system.
(4) Logging requirements regarding confidential personal information in existing department computer systems.(a) The department shall require department employees who access confidential personal information within computer systems to maintain a log that records their access.(b) Access to confidential information is not required to be entered into the log under the following circumstances: (i) The department employee is accessing confidential personal information for official department purposes, including research, and the access is not specifically directed toward a specifically named individual or a group of specifically named individuals.(ii) The department employee is accessing confidential personal information for routine office procedures and the access is not specifically directed toward a specifically named individual or a group of specifically named individuals.(iii) The department employee comes into incidental contact with confidential personal information and the access of the information is not specifically directed toward a specifically named individual or a group of specifically named individuals.(iv) The department employee accesses confidential personal information about an individual based upon a request made under either of the following circumstances: (a) The individual requests confidential personal information about himself/herself(b) The individual makes a request that the department takes some action on that individual's behalf and accessing the confidential personal information is required in order to consider or process that request(v) For purposes of this paragraph, the department may choose the form or forms of logging, whether in electronic or paper formats.(5) Log management. The department shall issue a policy that specifies the following:
(a) Who shall maintain the log;(b) What information shall be captured in the log;(c) How the log is to be stored; and(d) How long information kept in the log is to be retained.(6) Nothing in this rule limits the department from requiring logging in any circumstance that it deems necessary