At the beginning of May, the county administrative board decided that the municipality-owned VA Syd must pay seven million kroner for violating the law on safety protection on a number of different points.
About seventy people, who gained access to security-sensitive information in their work with, among other things, drinking water management and IT systems, have not been security tested.
It is about missing register checks, where the security police look in suspicion registers and criminal records.
According to the municipal association's own assessment, new register controls are completely missing between 2015 and 2021.
Espionage and terrorist crimes
VA Syd supplies drinking water to half a million Skåne.
Drinking water is counted by the security police as a socially important activity, if it is exposed to an attack, it can mean serious consequences.
- It is about espionage, terrorist crimes and other crimes that can threaten the business, exemplifies Stefan Hansson, supervisor at the County Administrative Board Skåne.
They believe that VA Syd has acted with nonchalance towards the regulations and sees the violations as intentional.
According to VA Syd, it is about a former employee who did not do his job.
From the management's side, it was believed that everything was in order.
Since the deficiencies were discovered, the outdated security analysis has been reviewed and the persons who have not been checked have been successively security tested.
- We do not see any damage based on this, says Joel Olthed, union director VA Syd.
Several left to check
Now VA Syd has a handful of people left to check, who are allowed to continue working in the meantime.
- We have a very important task to deliver water to 500,000 citizens, then we have to continue that work, says Olthed.
SVT Nyheter has been in contact with the designated former employee, who does not want to comment on the case and says that she has moved on.
VA Syd has appealed the penalty fee.