NZ Police have inadvertently made public the full details of the collector, and the location, of a H&K MP5, described by many as the greatest machine gun ever made.

The material was accidentally included in information given to a firearm owner who had made a privacy act request for information held by Police on himself. As part of its response, Police supplied the details of another collector who holds an H&K MP5. The breach is therefore fortunately contained because it was given to a fit and proper licensed firearm owner.

The Council of Licensed Firearm Owners is outraged by the error, pointing at multiple promises from Government and Police, and personal guarantees from Ministers, that private firearm information was safe and would never be released.

Police had previously said the firearm register would have the same high-level security protocols as Police’s National Intelligence Application.

And, following a privacy breach where 147 Auckland firearm owners had their details leaked by Police in an email bungle, Police had promised to strengthen its systems to prevent a repeat.

COLFO Spokesperson Hugh Devereux-Mack says changes in laws over the past few years mean Police are collecting more information than ever before, making the impact of any breach far more dangerous than in the past.

“People who advocated for a register said this would not happen – but it has.

“All the information being collected multiplies the opportunity for mishandling data, and for the impact of a mistake to have serious and dangerous consequences.

“The only thing that keeps preventing these disasters the Police initiate is the vigilance and responsibility of licensed firearm owners.”

Devereux-Mack said the details of the machine gun also revealed the danger posed within Police themselves, given 333 were investigated and 89 of them were convicted for criminal activity while in the job since 2021.

“If this sort of information is available to Police staff who are incompetently handling privacy information requests, then it’s also available to staff with criminal intent.

“We can’t escape the conclusion that on the matter of firearm safety, the Police present a greater danger to the public than properly licensed firearm owners,” Devereux-Mack says.

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