The Court of Appeal Rolls out the DP Barrel – Panopticon

‘Sometimes a case comes along which, whether through range of issues or over-enthusiastic pleading, seems to touch on more or less every data protection provision going. To this end, at least for the DPA 1998, we give you the lengthy treatise of Sales LJ that is: Cooper v National Crime Agency [2019] EWCA Civ 16.’

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Panopticon, 18th February 2019

Source: panopticonblog.com

Home Office still using NHS patient data for immigration enforcement despite suggesting it would end practice – The Independent

‘The Home Office is obtaining patient data from the NHS and using it for immigration enforcement purposes, despite suggesting last year that this form of data-sharing would no longer take place. A report by the chief inspector of borders reveals immigration enforcement teams are using hospital records containing data on migrants with an outstanding debt to the NHS of £500 or more.’

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The Independent, 4th February 2019

Source: www.independent.co.uk

Proposed UK law could expose journalists’ emails, say critics – The Guardian

Posted January 30th, 2019 in bills, data protection, disclosure, electronic mail, media, news, privacy by sally

‘British police forces could find it easier to access journalists’ private emails as a result of legislation making its way through parliament, according to freedom of speech campaigners, who are urging politicians to make a last-minute intervention to secure journalistic freedom.’

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The Guardian, 30th January 2019

Source: www.theguardian.com

Court of Appeal quashes convictions for unlawfully obtaining personal data – Local Government Lawyer

Posted January 25th, 2019 in burden of proof, data protection, human rights, news, statutory interpretation by tracey

‘The Court of Appeal has quashed the conviction of a defendant for unlawfully obtaining personal data. At issue in Shepherd v The Information Commissioner [2019] EWCA Crim 2 was whether s.55 (2) of the Data Protection Act 1998 imposes a legal or evidential burden of proof on a defendant; and, if the former, whether the outcome is compatible with Article 6 of the European Convention on Human Rights (the right to a fair trial).’

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Local Government Lawyer, 25th January 2019

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

Protester wins fight to wipe political activities from police database – The Guardian

Posted January 25th, 2019 in criminal records, data protection, demonstrations, human rights, news, police by tracey

‘A 94-year-old peaceful protester has won an eight-year legal battle to force the police to delete details of his political activities from a secretive database. On Thursday, the European court of human rights ruled in favour of John Catt, noting he “had never been convicted of any offence and his risk of violent criminality was remote”.’

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The Guardian, 24th January 2019

Source: www.theguardian.com

Newspapers secure summary judgment over libel claims brought by social worker – Local Government Lawyer

‘Two national newspaper groups have obtained summary judgment over libel claims brought by a former senior social worker.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 16th January 2019

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

It’s My Party and I’ll Cry/Sue for Accreditation if I Want To – Panopticon

Posted January 11th, 2019 in data protection, media, news, police, political parties by sally

‘How does data protection law feed into, and support, challenges to police action in the form of refusing press accreditation for a political party conference? The Divisional Court considered this in R (Segalov) v Chief Constable of Sussex Police & Chief Constable of Greater Manchester Police [2018] EWHC 3187 (Admin).’

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Panopticon, 10th January 2019

Source: panopticonblog.com

Data now as important a commodity as oil, leading QC says – Daily Telegraph

Posted January 7th, 2019 in data protection, internet, news by sally

‘Personal data is now as important a commodity as oil, a leading QC has said as he warns companies that they need to be up front on what they are using it for.’

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Daily Telegraph, 7th January 2019

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

Man withdraws ‘right to be forgotten’ case against – The Guardian

Posted December 21st, 2018 in appeals, conspiracy, criminal records, data protection, fraud, internet, news, privacy by tracey

‘A businessman who launched legal action against Google for the “right to be forgotten” over a past crime has ended his court battle.’

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The Guardian, 20th December 2018

Source: www.theguardian.com

Police trawls of rape victims’ private data to be investigated – The Guardian

Posted December 20th, 2018 in data protection, news, police, privacy, rape, victims by tracey

‘UK watchdog inquiry into possible routine breaching of privacy and data regulations.’

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The Guardian, 20th December 2018

Source: www.theguardian.com

GDPR: Small business owners still ‘clueless’ about Data Protection Rules, study claims – The Independent

Posted December 12th, 2018 in data protection, EC law, news, small businesses by sally

‘Small business owners polled for a new survey have admitted they are still “clueless” about GDPR – leaving the personal data of millions of employees and customers at risk.’

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The Independent, 12th December 2018

Source: www.independent.co.uk

E-receipts from leading retailers ‘may break data protection rules’ – The Guardian

Posted December 11th, 2018 in advertising, consent, data protection, electronic mail, news, privacy by sally

‘Several large retailers may be breaking data protection rules with their e-receipts, according to an investigation by the consumer body Which?.’

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The Guardian, 11th December 2018

Source: www.theguardian.com

Police to stop passing on immigration status of crime victims – The Guardian

Posted December 7th, 2018 in codes of practice, data protection, deportation, immigration, news, police, victims by tracey

‘Police will cease to automatically pass information about people suspected of being in the country illegally to deportation authorities if they come forward as victims of crime, according to a new policy hammered out in the wake of the Windrush scandal, the Guardian has learned.’

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The Guardian, 6th December 2018

Source: www.theguardian.com

Ex-headteacher fined for unlawfully obtaining personal data on school children – Local Government Lawyer

Posted December 6th, 2018 in abuse of position of trust, data protection, fines, news, teachers by sally

‘A former headteacher has been fined for unlawfully obtaining school children’s personal data from previous schools where he worked.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 5th December 2018

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

Safeguards governing investigatory powers come into effect – Home Office

‘Government commences final provision in the Investigatory Powers Act 2016 subject to the double-lock safeguard requiring judicial approval.’

Full press release

Home Office, 28th November 2018

Source: www.gov.uk/home-office

Asylum seekers ‘too afraid’ to seek NHS care, report says – The Guardian

Posted November 29th, 2018 in asylum, data protection, health, human rights, immigration, news, ombudsmen by tracey

‘Asylum seekers who need NHS care have been left in “considerable fear” because of the government’s “hostile environment” policies, according to the human rights watchdog.
In a highly critical report the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) says people have gone without medical help since ministers forced the NHS in England to impose upfront charges to access care last year.’

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The Guardian, 28th November 2018

Source: www.theguardian.com

Uber fined after hackers download 2.7 million customers’ data – The Independent

Posted November 27th, 2018 in computer crime, data protection, disclosure, fines, news, privacy, taxis by tracey

‘Uber has been fined £385,000 for failing to protect customers’ information during a cyber attack, in a “serious breach” of UK data protection law. The Information Commissioners Office (ICO) found Uber was guilty of “a series of avoidable data security flaws” that allowed the personal details of around 2.7million UK customers to be accessed and downloaded by attackers.’

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The Independent, 27th November 2018

Source: www.independent.co.uk

Facebook documents seized by MPs investigating privacy breach – BBC News

Posted November 26th, 2018 in data protection, documents, internet, news, parliament, privacy, search & seizure by tracey

‘A cache of Facebook documents has been seized by MPs investigating the Cambridge Analytica data scandal. Rarely used parliamentary powers were used to demand that the boss of a US software firm hand over the details.’

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BBC News, 25th November 2018

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Facebook appeals against Cambridge Analytica fine – BBC News

Posted November 23rd, 2018 in appeals, data protection, fines, internet, news, ombudsmen, privacy by sally

‘Facebook has appealed against a fine imposed on it by the UK’s data watchdog after the Cambridge Analytica scandal.’

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BBC News, 21st November 2018

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Facebook to lodge appeal against ICO’s £500,000 fine – The Guardian

Posted November 22nd, 2018 in appeals, data protection, fines, internet, news by tracey

‘Facebook is lodging an appeal against the record fine of £500,000 levied against it by the Information Commissioner’s Office in the UK, arguing that the penalty “challenges some of the basic principles of how people should be allowed to share information online”.’

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The Guardian, 21st November 2018

Source: www.theguardian.com