Data Protection & Commercial Sector Seán Sweeney Assistant Commissioner Office of the Data Protection Commissioner Ireland Gibraltar January 24 th 2006

Presentation Outline  Background – Human Rights  Data Protection Principles  Rights of data subjects  Some FAQs

Why Data Protection? Post-Word War II emphasis on human rights George Orwell, “1984” (published in 1949) International Agreements on Human Rights Development of computer power

Privacy: Legal development Universal Declaration on Human Rights (1948) European Convention on Human Rights (1950) Convention 108 (Council of Europe, 1981) Background

UN Universal Declaration on Human Rights, 1948 Article 12: No one shall be subjected to arbitrary interference with his privacy, family, home or correspondence... Everyone has the right to the protection of the law against such interference ….

European Convention on Human Rights, 1950 Article 8: Everyone has the right to respect for his private and family life, his home and his correspondence … There shall be no interference by a public authority with this right except such as is necessary in a democratic society Background

Key concept Privacy is a Human Right

Council of Europe Convention, 1981 Also called “Convention 108” Deals specifically with data protection Ireland’s Data Protection Act 1988 gives effect to this Convention

Directive 95/46/EC Harmonisation across EU. –Free movement of data across EU Extends DP to manual records.

Key concept Data Protection Laws are one method of protecting privacy rights.

Essential points People have a fundamental right to privacy –You are legally obliged to recognise this right Showing that you recognise and protect that right makes good business sense –Necessary for trade with EU Member States –Can be a used as a selling point

How DP legislation work By imposing obligations on those who process personal data; By providing rights to individuals regarding how their data are processed.

Limited exemptions: Data exempt on National Security grounds. Data that is processed for personal domestic or recreational purposes

Data Protection Principles. 1. Fair obtaining  consent 2. Accurate 3. Specified purpose 4. No further processing  Unless compatible 5.Relevant, not excessive 6.Retention period 7.Safe & secure 8.Comply with access request

Obtain & Process Fairly I Data controller must give full information about –identity –purposes –disclosees –any other data necessary for “fairness” Third party data controllers –must contact data subject to provide these details –must give name of original data controller 1 st Principle

Obtain & Process Fairly II One of these conditions required:  Consent  Legal obligation  Contract with individual  Necessary to protect vital interests  Necessary for a public function (Justice)  necessary for ‘legitimate interests’ 1 st Principle

Processing Sensitive Data One of these additional conditions is required  Explicit consent  Necessary under employment law  To prevent injury or protect vital interests  Process the data of members/clients of non- profit orgs.  Legal advice  For Medical Purposes  Statutory function 1 st Principle

What are sensitive data?  Physical or mental health  Racial origin  Political opinions  Religious or other beliefs  Sexual life  Criminal convictions  Alleged commission of offence  Trade Union membership

Fair Obtaining - practical Transparency is the key issue Generally, a person should know –who is processing his/her data –and for what purpose

Fair Obtaining - practical Consent is easiest to rely upon –If from 3 rd party, is their responsibility to demonstrate legitimacy to you Consent has to be freely given –Not freely given in employment context –Rely upon contractual or statutory obligations “Legitimate interest” is often applied

Fair Obtaining - practical CCTV – well placed signage meets transparency requirement Consent not required if CCTV for security –Legitimate interest Consent not required if for health & safety –Legal obligation Though consent not required, transparency requires information is supplied (sign)

Fair Obtaining - practical If relying on consent for data obtained on a form –Require any consent clause to be at least as big a font size as the data collection element of form –If on-line, require a privacy statement that covers transparency & fair obtaining requirements

Accurate, Complete, up to date Often a reactive rather than proactive task 2 nd Principle

Accurate - practical If you change your address and do not tell your bank, they are not at fault for sending mail to your old address. However, if mail is returned to the bank as undeliverable, the bank must act by at least not sending any more mail to that address.

Specified Purpose Part of obligations when obtaining to specify purpose Cannot expand purpose without reverting to individual 3 rd Principle

Purpose - practical Purpose might be implied from transaction - such as for administration of an account. Otherwise, should be clearly referred to

Purpose – case study A phone company published electronic telephone directory Directory allowed search by address This was a new purpose, as original directory only allowed search by name Publication unlawful, directory withdrawn until issue resolved

Disclosing personal data Further processing not generally permitted – compatibility test section 19 – lifts the restrictions on disclosure: –crime; tax; State security; –required urgently to protect life and limb –required by law or court order –with consent of, or on behalf of, data subject 4 th Principle

Disclosure Policy The Data Controller should have a policy in place to determine how requests for data from third parties are handled. This policy should be consulted by appropriate staff members

Disclosure - practical An example of a compatible disclosure is where you supply data to an organisation in order to get a product/service. If that organisation must supply your data to a third party in order to get that product/service delivered, it is a compatible disclosure.

Relevant and not excessive Do you need all this data? - look a form and see if you need all data - can data collected be culled over time? Different policies for different sectors 5 th Principle

Retention of data Legal obligations to hold data? Customer files –Do you need to hold all that data? Personnel files –Revenue requirement? Must have policy thought through –Defend retention as necessary for purpose. 6 th Principle

Retention – HR files When employees leaves/retires, employer might have long term need to hold onto certain data –Dates of employment –Positions held –Tax record –Injuries But other data has no purpose beyond the time an ex-employee might seek a reference –Assessments & evaluations 6 th Principle

Retention – Quotations Insurance company may offer household or motor insurance quote If “customer” does not take up offer within reasonable period (one month?) then that person is not a customer and details must be deleted – unless company has consent. 6 th Principle

Retention – Financial record Leisure & on-line sector often retain credit card details May make future transactions easier and more secure Can only be retained with customer consent! 6 th Principle

Security Procedures Security measures  Appropriate security measures Appropriate to the harm that might result.. Appropriate to the nature of the data  May have regard to cost of implementation  May have regard to the current state of technology  Staff must know and comply with measures  Internal review of security measures-part of Internal Audit function ? 7 th Principle

Data Protection Training. Obligation on employer to ensure staff are aware of data protection security obligations (especially access). –Training

Data Processors Agents and sub-contractors There must be a written contract in place Data Controller must take reasonable steps to ensure compliance with security measures

Security - practical Security standard should be reviewed - if the type of data being processed are changed; - if the organisation’s resources increase; - at least on an annual basis to see if new measures may be employed

Security - practical Access to data should be on a need to know basis Access controls should be known about, enforced and reviewed

Security – case study Insurance company employee resigns but takes laptop with him Laptop contains client list Employee contacts clients on behalf of new employer Original employer at fault for not taking measures to prevent this – not covered in employment contract.

Rights of Individuals o To have data processed in accordance with principles o To get a copy of personal information o To correct information if it is wrong o To opt out of direct marketing o To complain to the Data Protection Commissioner 8 th Principle

Access Requests Section 14 –exceptions section 19. Availability of material subject to receipt of an Access Request May question: –Relevance –Excessive nature –Retention, etc

Scope of Access Request Applies to all manual and electronic records in existence at the time of receipt of an access request – regardless of when the record was created.

Opinion given in confidence Exempt from an access request if the expression of an opinion was given in confidence or under the understanding it would be treated as confidential. This is useful when giving references

Exempt from Access Requests  Data relating to a criminal investigation  a claim of liability  Data covered by legal privilege

Access – Disciplinary Investigation  Exempt if access would prejudice investigation  No longer exempt after investigation has concluded

Employee Access Rights  Same rights as any data subject  Not all documents with employee name are personal data  Authoring document in work capacity does not mean that document is personal.

Access Requests - Resources  Should not require significant resources  Retention principle should encourage deletion of data on a regular basis, thus limiting the amount of data to be searched

Structured files  Must be able to search files  By name of data subject?  By other reasonable identifier?  By date/file reference supplied by data subject  Electronic records easier to search than manual records

Enforced subject access  An employer cannot ask an employee to use his/her access right to obtain data in order to gain/retain employment  Police and credit records cannot be accessed unless by law

Empowerment The Right of Access empowers individuals by enabling them to supervise the processing of their personal data.

Right to correct/erase Personal data must be: –Corrected, if inaccurate; or –Deleted, if should not be held. Should not be a significant issue if organisation well run –May get DS complaining about data being held

Direct Marketing Commonest topic for complaints –So expect people will complain Must be able to administer a “do not mail” list/suppression file Must tell DS source of data

Public Register Describe Data handling practices –PurposeTransfers abroad –Type of data Disclosures Public: transparency and openness Will involve careful thought initially, but little ongoing resources

Why Register?  Is a legal obligation  But also a very useful way for Data Protection Commissioner to interact with Data Controllers  Helps Data Controllers focus on Data Protection at time of registration

Frequently Asked Questions

If Police or Gov Dept ask for information about a customer, should It be supplied? Not automatically, must assess situation Is disclosure compatible with purpose? Is there a statutory requirement? Is it needed for investigation of crime? Is it to protect life or limb?

Can an employer monitor staff? Yes, depending on the conditions of any in- house policy document. Monitoring should be proportionate and as least intrusive as possible. Examination of content, web profiles should be done in context of disciplinary inquiry.

Can monitoring occur without employee consent? Whilst transparency is fundamental to the fair obtaining principle, consent is not always required. Where the employer can rely on the legitimate interest provision, consent is not required.

What about covert surveillance? Not generally permitted However, if investigating serious matter, limited, focused short term covert monitoring may be allowed Exceptional circumstances only

Can I get a copy of my personnel file? You have a right to a copy of any record relating to you – including personnel files, assessments, evaluations and interview notes. Opinions given in confidence may be withheld.

Can I outsource data? No difficulty if you use a contract with your data processor. If you transfer data outside the EEA, will have to meet certain conditions. So, may have to review current and planned use of data processors. You should also be aware of your role in insuring agents behave appropriately.

Can I put employee details on website? Certain details may be appropriate – Name, position, contact details, special training Other details are not necessary – Photographs, salary, family details

Can I rent marketing lists? Yes, but make sure that the list broker states if there are any restrictions attached to the list – Is it for certain products/sectors only? – How recently was it cleaned/updated?

Can I market my sister firm’s clients? Your sister firm may be able to market its clients o your behalf, but not give you a client list to use. Need to check consent issue or compatibility – would clients be aware of relationship?

Thank You Thank you for listening Any questions?