Overview

The obligation to ensure that personal information is held securely, through "appropriate technical and organisational" means, has been in set out in the Data Protection Act 1998 for over 11 years. Whilst damage to reputation is a common result of security breaches, the ICO also has fining powers (up to £500,000) where serious breaches of the DPA occur. No custodial sentences are currently available, but with the Information Commissioner stating this month that "it beggars belief" that such sentences are not available, it seems the question is when and not if this position will change.

In this briefing, Eversheds outlines how data loss can be avoided with regards to active compliance, contracts with third party service providers and awareness training.

To learn more, click 'View Briefing'.