Fairfax, North Mankato Deputy Registrar Office employees found guilty of unauthorized access

Employees at deputy registrar offices in Fairfax and North Mankato have permanently lost access to driver and vehicle data after it was discovered they had used unauthorized access to clients’ data without a lawful business purpose.

The offices offer services such as driver’s license applications, vehicle registrations, disability parking certifications, and DNR registrations and licenses.

DPS-DVS became aware an employee of the Fairfax Deputy Registrar office was using another employee’s access credentials, which is not allowed under the law. This triggered an audit by DPS-DVS; auditors found seven instances where the two users accessed DVS data without a lawful business purpose. As a result, their access to DVS data has been permanently revoked, as required by law.

Because the two individuals are the only employees of the Fairfax Deputy Registrar, the office will need to close until other individuals can be hired, trained and authorized to access DPS-DVS data. The Fairfax Deputy Registrar office is privately owned and operated. In addition to vehicle title and registration services, the office is also a limited driver’s license agent.

Three of the five employees of the North Mankato Deputy Registrar office have permanently lost access to driver and vehicle data after it was found that the individuals accessed several driver’s license and motor vehicle records without a lawful business purpose. A self-search by an employee at the North Mankato office on May 4 triggered the audit. It is unlawful for a person with access to DPS-DVS data to perform a search on themselves or anyone else without a lawful business purpose. DPS-DVS suspended the user on May 28.

Additional DPS-DVS auditing found four users in the office accessed DPS-DVS data without a lawful business purpose. Three of the four individuals are current employees, while the fourth is no longer an employee of the privately owned office. The revocations leave two employees at the North Mankato office with access to DPS-DVS data.

It is not clear how this action will affect services provided by the North Mankato deputy registrar office. North Mankato Deputy Registrar office is privately owned and operated. In addition to vehicle title and registration services, the office is also a limited driver’s license agent.