Information Law

Are you ready for UK GDPR 2.0?

Ibrahim Hasan sets out the key points from the Government's consultation on a revamped data protection regime. Read more

NEWS

Oct 07, 2021

Search of personal documents of former Health and Social Care Secretary to be carried out, to challenge contract awards to Abingdon Health

Mr Justice Fraser has ordered a search of former Health and Social Care Secretary Matt Hancock’s personal emails and social media apps.

Sep 10, 2021

Government issues consultation on reforms to data regime and information watchdog

The Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) has launched a consultation on a revamped data regime including proposals for reform of the Information Commissioner’s Office.

Sep 06, 2021

Local authority ordered to pay mother fleeing ex-partner £10k in compensation following data breach

Hampshire County Council should pay £10,000 in compensation after a mother who was fleeing her ex-partner had her address exposed in a data breach, Portsmouth Magistrates' Court has ruled.

Aug 31, 2021

Civil liberties groups demand ban of use of facial recognition technology by police

Liberty, Privacy International and 29 other organisations have called for Parliament to ban the use of live facial recognition technology (LFRT) by the police and private companies.

Aug 26, 2021

Government confirms plans to consult on future of data protection regime, role of Information Commissioner’s Office

The Government has confirmed that it will consult in the coming weeks on the future of the UK’s data protection regime, saying it wants to “make it even more ambitious and innovation-friendly while still being underpinned by secure and trustworthy privacy standards”.

Aug 19, 2021

Campaigner cleared after arrest for publishing documents from council housing organisation

A local campaigner was arrested after downloading and tweeting documents he found online concerning board meetings and other affairs of Leathermarket Community Benefit Society, a community-led organisation whose purpose is to provide council homes for local residents in severe housing need.

Aug 16, 2021

Information watchdog calls for views on employment practices and data protection

The Information Commissioner’s Office has issued a call for views as it looks to update its Employment Practices guidance.

Aug 09, 2021

Council defeats tribunal bid by FOI requester for legal advice on power to issue excess charge notices over off-street car parking and to pursue criminal prosecutions for contraventions

The First-tier Tribunal has refused a request for the disclosure of legal advice obtained by a city council on the correct use of its car parking enforcement powers, and clarified how the public interest balance should be assessed in cases where the legal professional privilege exemption in s.42(1) of the Freedom of Information Act is involved.

Aug 04, 2021

Information watchdog issues guidance for public sector bodies on application of direct marketing rules

The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) has published a new resource to help public sector organisations understand when the direct marketing rules will apply to their messages.

Jul 22, 2021

Information on selection of academy trust to run schools should be disclosed, tribunal judge finds

Hertfordshire County Council was wrong to withhold information on how an academy trust was chosen to provide schools in Bishop's Stortford and the Information Commissioner had been wrong to agree with the council’s arguments.

FEATURES AND ANALYSIS

August 19, 2021

Delivering 21st-century customer experience in the public sector

Rachel Buchanan examines how legal teams should support their authorities in delivering tailored services at a time of restrained resources.

August 12, 2021

Confidential information and subject access disclosure

Matthew Alderton reports on a case where a council was entitled to final injunctive relief to prevent the defendant from using confidential information that had been disclosed inadvertently.

August 05, 2021

Cyber-attacks, data breaches and causes of action

A recent High Court claim was based on a core allegation that the defendant had failed to protect the claimant’s data from a cyber-attack. Peter Wake looks at the lessons to be learned.

July 22, 2021

GDPR fines

The Information Commissioner's Office recently issued its first GDPR fine to a charity. Ibrahim Hasan examines the watchdog's track record of enforcement.

May 20, 2021

GDPR news roundup

So much has happened in the world of data protection recently, writes Ibrahim Hasan. Where to start?

March 08, 2021

Covid testing in schools and data protection

Neil Murphy examines the data protection issues that arise with the return to school and the prospect of on-site tests for Covid.

February 26, 2021

New Statutory Guidance on Data Sharing

John Fitzsimons looks at the key points for data controllers arising out of the Information Commissioner's new Data Sharing Code of Practice and identifies some surprising omissions.

February 05, 2021

Data-sharing safeguards: no ‘micro-managing’

Robin Hopkins looks at the lessons to be learned from an important Court of Appeal ruling on data-sharing, in a case involving the arrangements between a police force and a local crime reduction partnership.

MORE NEWS

Jul 20, 2021

Campaign group calls for public register of algorithms used by councils, files complaint with Information Commissioner

Campaign group Big Brother Watch has hit out at councils’ use of algorithms, claiming that most of those it had uncovered were “secretive, unevidenced, incredibly invasive and likely discriminatory”.

Jul 07, 2021

ICO launches formal investigation into use of private email accounts at Department of Health and Social Care

The Information Commissioner’s Office has launched an investigation into the use of private correspondence channels at the Department of Health and Social Care.

Jun 25, 2021

Tribunal upholds decision by council to refuse to disclose views of independent persons on complaint about councillor

The First-Tier Tribunal has dismissed a legal challenge to a district council’s decision to refuse, in response to a freedom of information request, to provide the views of two independent persons on a complaint about the conduct of a councillor.

Jun 24, 2021

Councils reported 700+ data breaches to Information Commissioner in 2020: report

UK councils reported an estimated 700+ data breaches to the Information Commissioner’s Office in 2020, according to research by cyber security services company Redscan.

Jun 18, 2021

Investigation of organisations using live facial recognition technology in public spaces found none compliant with data protection law: ICO

An investigation by the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) published today (17 June) found that out of a group of organisations using live facial recognition (LFR) technology in public spaces, none were fully compliant with data protection law requirements.

May 24, 2021

Groups crowd fund £43k+ for legal challenge over disappearing message apps and conduct of government business

Two organisations have raised more than £43,000 towards a legal action over the potential use of disappearing message apps to conduct government business.

Apr 26, 2021

Supreme Court to hear key case this week on approach to data breach compensation claims

The Supreme Court will this week (28 April) hear a key case on the approach to compensation claims arising out of data breaches.

Apr 26, 2021

Warning of huge cost burden for councils after High Court rules Royal Borough acted unlawfully in refusing right to inspect accounting records on basis of time it would take

A London borough acted unlawfully in refusing a request to inspect its accounting records on the grounds of the time it would take to satisfy the request, a High Court judge has ruled.

Apr 21, 2021

Council wins extension of time in tribunal case over investment in solar farms

Thurrock Council has been given an extension of time to make its case in a First Tier Tribunal case over disclosures sought by the Bureau of Investigative Journalism (BIJ).

Mar 25, 2021

Court of Appeal dismisses bid by journalist for access to documents held by council in relation to public law children proceedings, but calls for guidance in form of court rules

The Court of Appeal has dismissed an appeal by a journalist after she was refused access to documents held by Southampton City Council in relation to care and placement proceedings.

Mar 18, 2021

Tribunal allows FOI appeal in part over council investments in solar farm

The Bureau for Investigative Journalism (BIJ) has won an interim ruling in a First Tier Tribunal case to require Thurrock Council to disclose information about its investments in solar farms, it has been reported.

Mar 11, 2021

Councils and other public bodies to be put under legal duty to share data and intelligence in cases of serious violence

A new legal duty is to be imposed on local authorities, the police, criminal justice agencies, health and fire and rescue services to share data and intelligence in cases concerning serious violence.

Mar 04, 2021

Court of Appeal hears appeal by journalist over access to court documents from public law children case

The Court of Appeal is today (4 March) hearing an appeal from a journalist over a judge’s refusal of her application for permission to access court documents in relation to public law proceedings concerning a child.

Feb 18, 2021

First-tier Tribunal allows appeal to limited extent over refusal by Information Commissioner’s Office to disclose arrangements for external legal services

An applicant who sought details of the Information Commissioner's agreements for obtaining external legal services has been successful - but only to a limited extent - in an appeal to access this data.

Feb 11, 2021

Council secures injunction against man who circumvented redaction in child protection papers

The London Borough of Lambeth has won a final injunction against a man who was able to remove a redaction on papers concerning child welfare.

Jan 21, 2021

Police force wins appeal over sharing of information about teenager with local crime reduction partnership

A teenager has failed in a judicial review of how information on her was shared between Sussex Police and the Brighton & Hove Business Crime Reduction Partnership.

Jan 07, 2021

Upper Tribunal rejects request for copies of notes made by First-tier Tribunal judge during information rights hearing

The Upper Tribunal (Administrative Appeals Chamber) has refused an applicant permission to appeal a ruling that he was not entitled to receive a copy of the notes made by a First-tier Tribunal judge in an earlier hearing.

Dec 18, 2020

Information Commissioner publishes new Data Sharing Code of Practice

The Information Commissioner's office has published its new code of practice laying out how organisations and businesses can carry out responsible data sharing.

Dec 14, 2020

Court of Appeal agrees to hear case over journalist access to court records in care proceedings

The Court of Appeal has granted permission to appeal in a case concerning the question of the extent to which journalists can gain access to court records in family law proceedings, it has been reported.

Oct 26, 2020

London borough admits some services could be significantly disrupted “for some time” as it reels from cyberattack

Some services provided by Hackney Council may be significantly disrupted for some time as the London borough responds to a cyberattack that has impacted its ‘legacy’ and non-cloud based systems, Mayor Philip Glanville has warned.

Oct 21, 2020

ICO moves to provide clarity in subject access requests on ‘stopping the clock’, manifestly excessive requests, and charges

The Information Commissioner’s Office has published detailed guidance on how organisations should deal with subject access requests (SARs) “effectively and efficiently”.

Oct 07, 2020

Information watchdog strongly criticises Department for Education for failure to prioritise data protection

The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) has made 139 recommendations – more than 60% of which are classified as urgent or high priority – to the Department for Education after publishing the outcome of a compulsory audit carried out in February 2020.

Oct 01, 2020

Information Commissioner consults on draft statutory guidance for publication after Brexit

The Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) has launched a public consultation on its draft statutory guidance, which details how it will regulate and enforce data protection legislation in the UK.

Sep 29, 2020

Court finds retention of data obtained under Prevent Strategy when claimant was 11 year old unlawful

The Metropolitan Police’s retention of data on a 16-year-old child (known as II) from the age of 11 was unlawful and a disproportionate interference with his right to private life, a High Court judge has ruled.

Aug 19, 2020

ICO calls for projects on data sharing in public interest as part of “regulatory sandbox”

The Information Commissioner’s Office has called for projects to be submitted that support complex data sharing in the public interest, after re-opening its “regulatory sandbox”.

MORE FEATURES

January 29, 2021

FOI, disclosure of information and actionable breaches of confidence

Monckton Chambers summarises a recent Upper Tribunal ruling involving a council and the FOIA exemption in relation to actionable breaches of confidence.

January 21, 2021

Data protection under the EU GDPR

The following Information Law precedent from LexisNexis provides comprehensive and up to date legal information covering data protection after the final withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the European Union.

December 11, 2020

Can you legally record video meetings?

Whilst video-conferencing via Zoom or Teams etc has allowed us to carry out our business relatively uninterrupted, they have also presented organisations with a new set of privacy considerations to take into account, writes Bronwen Jones.

October 29, 2020

The ICO’s new subject access guidance

The Information Commissioner’s Office has published detailed guidance on how organisations should deal with subject access requests (SARs) “effectively and efficiently”. Ibrahim Hasan looks at the key points.

October 01, 2020

Data protection challenges of remote working

Samantha Smith looks at how organisations can handle the data protection challenges of remote working.

September 09, 2020

Data Protection and FOI/EIR requests – coming out of lockdown

Following the ICO's call for councils to make plans for returning to pre-covid levels of FOI work, Damien Welfare, Estelle Dehon, Isabella Buono and Rowan Clapp look ahead to the time when the regulatory environment returns to normal, and requesters are likely to expect their outstanding requests to be answered quickly.

August 20, 2020

Child, mother, journalist – whose rights win out?

Matthew White analyses the first recorded High Court judgment concerning journalistic access to the court file in public law family proceedings.

August 20, 2020

ICO publishes Artificial Intelligence guidance

The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) has published the final version of its guidance on Artificial Intelligence and Data Protection. James Cassidy looks at the key points.

July 23, 2020

Data Protection Officers and conflicts of interest

Samantha Smith examines a recent Belgian case where a data protection officer was found to have had a conflict of interest.

July 16, 2020

Disclosure of staff names in FOI requests

Ibrahim Hasan sets out the key considerations for public authorities when an FOI request calls for the disclosure of staff names.

July 16, 2020

FOIA appeals and enforcement: who has the power?

When the First-tier Tribunal decides an information rights appeal and finds in favour of the requestor, who has the responsibility for enforcing any non-compliance with that judgment? Is it the FTT, or is it the Information Commissioner? Christopher Knight examines an interesting judgment.