The Office of the Chancellor of Justice Ülle Madise has found that government agencies have been accessing account holders' banking information through the enforcement register without a proper legal basis. State institutions have made tens of thousands of inquiries to banks over the past year.

In response, Pakosta said: "The amendment made in 2020 has likely indeed left some questions unanswered, and these need to be resolved."

The minister stressed that it must be guaranteed in Estonia that no representative of the state can access anyone's personal data without a clear legal basis.

"Banking secrecy is just as important as the protection of health data. It must be ensured," she said.

Commenting on the high number of requests, Pakosta said that something is clearly wrong with Estonia's debt system.

"There are still about 100,000 people in Estonia under enforcement proceedings. That's one in six working-age people. That may be the reason why there are so many of these requests," Pakosta said.

"I think we need to resolve the issue as a whole: to find a solution to the debt problem so that the entire enforcement system is lawful, and so that under no circumstances does the state abuse its power against people," the minister said.

Madise recommended that the Minister of Justice and Digital Affairs urgently adopt a foundational statute for the Enforcement Register.

This statute should include oversight mechanisms that allow monitoring both the number of inquiries made and the specific justification for each one, including its connection to a particular legal proceeding.

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