The Data Protection Act 1998
and the
Freedom of Information Act 2000

Tony Brett

IT Support Staff Services

OUCS

Overview

General overview of the DPA 1998

Definitions

Changes since 1984 Act

Sensitive Personal Data & Consent

The eight principles

Transitional Relief

Implications for Colleges and Departments

Things to keep in mind

Freedom of Information Act 2000

Who it affects

Public Rights

Publication Schemes

Exemptions

Key Points

Resources

What is the Data Protection Act?

Intended to balance interests of data subjects with data controllers.

Freedom to process data vs. privacy of individuals.

1984 act was repealed by the 1998 act.

24 October 1998.

1 March 2000.

Definitions

Personal Data

Expression of opinion, or fact, E-mail address, photos, video footage etc. etc.

Some types are sensitive (a special new category).

Processing

Reviewing, holding, sorting, deleting

Data Controller

all of us! Users of data

Relevant Filing System

Readily accessible information about living individuals

Information Commissioner

New name for Data Protection Registrar

Changes Since the 1984 Act

Much broader than the old act.

More rights for data subjects.

Covers relevant manual filing systems.

New category of data – sensitive data.

Transitional relief – 23 October 2001, for existing automated data and 23 October 2007 for manual records.

Processing must have been in effect before 24 October 1998.

Rules about export of data to non-EEA countries.

Some Effects on Colleges and Departments

Data subjects are students, staff, alumni, suppliers (sole traders or partnerships), tenants, legal advisers, fellows etc.

Not people “acting in a capacity”.

Anyone can be a data controller

Dead people have no rights.

Overseas transfers of data – notably to U.S.

Requirement to ensure data is secure, accurate, sufficient but not excessive.

Can’t hold data longer than is reasonable.

Principles of the act – 1.

Non-sensitive Personal data must be processed fairly and lawfully and shall not be processed unless one of the below is met (schedule 2).

Consent – the most important

Contract

Legal Obligation

Vital interests of subject (life or death!)

Public functions

Balance of interest

Sensitive Personal Data

Racial or ethnic origin

Political opinions

Religious/similar beliefs (note food!)

Trade Union Membership

Health

Sexual Life

Offences

Sensitive Personal Data

May only be held if one of the below is met:

Explicit and informed consent

Employment Law

Vital Interests of Subject

Legal Proceedings

Medical Purposes (by medical professionals)

Equal opportunities monitoring

Consent

“Freely given specific and informed indication of wishes by which the data suject signifies agreement to personal data relating to him/her being processed.”

Can’t use implied consent – must get forms back.

Can’t use blanket consent as condition of entry.

Fair processing

Must not intentionally or otherwise deceive or mislead subject as to purpose of data use/collection.

Must identify to subject data controller/nominated representative.

Must identify to subject purpose of processing data.

Exceptions are disproportionate effort (direct marketing not allowed) or legal obligation.

Principles of the act – 2.

Data must be obtained only for one or more specified lawful purposes.

Must not use data for a new incompatible purpose without subject’s consent.

Have a data protection statement explaining what data will be held and why and get consent from new students/staff as they arrive.

Old members data is a grey area for Colleges.

Principles of the act – 3 & 4.

Personal data must be adequate, relevant and not excessive.

Must not stock up on data without a reason that can be justified – consent!

Personal data shall be accurate and up-to-date.

This is an ongoing requirement and means data needs to be kept under constant review.

Principles of the act – 5.

Personal data may not be kept for any longer than is necessary for its stated purpose(s).

This potentially creates a problem with old staff/members data. Development offices beware!

Consent from all new staff/members to keep their data after they have left as this is a different purpose to keeping it while they are here.

Principles of the act – 6.

Personal data must be processed in accordance with the rights of data subjects

This means that you cannot do things that violate the rights given to data subjects under the new act, especially denying access to data.

Rights of data subjects

Must be informed if personal data are being processed and given a description of the personal data and for what purpise it is being held.

May prevent processing for purposes of direct marketing.

Right to see algorithms used in automated decision making (credit scoring etc.).

Compensation, rectification, blocking, destruction.

Access rights

Right to have communicated to him/her in an intelligible form the information constituting the data.

No right to rifle through filing systems, computers etc.

Right to be informed of logic involved in automated processing.

Request must be in writing, fee up to £10 may be charged and identity may be thoroughly checked.

Access rights – 2.

Data may be witheld if disclosure would disclose data about a third party unless:

Third party has consented to disclosure

It is reasonable to comply without the third party’s consent.

Duty of confidentiality, steps taken to seek consent, express refusal of third party.

Witnesses, confidential reports, access to references	.

Access rights – 3.

Don’t have to disclose references you have written but must disclose those you have received unless the writer explicitly asked them to kept confidential.

40 days to comply (or state reason for refusal to comply) with requests.

Don’t need to comply with repeat requests until a reasonable amount of time has elapsed.

Don’t need to comply if disproportionate effort would be involved.

Subject must provide reasonable data you request to assist in finding the data.

Enforced Access

It is an offence to force subjects to exercise their access rights to data held by others

Includes data about cautions, criminal convictions and certain social security records

Right to prevent processing

Unwarranted substantial damage or distress to subject.

21 days to comply with request.

Exemption if processing is necessary for performance of contract with subject or there is a legal obligation, or the vital interests of the subject are at stake.

Exemptions to access rights

Prevention and detection of crime

Apprehension or prosecution of offenders

Collection of tax or other duty

Research, history, statistics.

Exam marks – 40 days after date of announcement or 5 months of access request.

Confidential references.

Principles of the act – 7.

Technical or organisational measures must be taken to prevent unauthorised or unlawful processing of data and accidental loss, damage or destruction of data.

First is related to IT support staff (backups, password security etc.) but everyone can help.

Second is about being careful with keys, having access controls, CCTV monitoring etc.

Beware social engineering!

Principles of the act – 8.

Personal data may not be transferred overseas unless the receiving country has an adequate level of protection for it.

US does not.

Putting things on a web site is tantamount to export of data.

Transfer is OK if contract is in place with the abroad party or the subject has consented.

Data Protection Commissioner is preparing standard contracts.

Notification

Colleges are legally separate entities to The University so has to notify use to commissioner separately. Departments are not.

This is like the old registration process under the old act.

University counts as a third party in the case of Colleges.

Penalties for failure to comply/notify are huge.

Commissioner has draconian powers (search & seize).

The Freedom of Information Act 2000

The FOI act 2000 gives individuals the right to access information about certain public bodies (including HE institutions) by two routes:

Publication Scheme

General Right of Access

There are exemptions

FOI basically extends subject access rights given in the DPA 1998

Colleges are separate legal entities so need their own Publication Scheme and procedures

FOI – Public Rights

To be told whether the information exists – known as the duty to confirm or deny

To receive the information (and, where possible, in the manner requested)

To receive reasons for a decision to withhold information

All requests must be in “permanent form”

E-mail, Letter, Fax

Reply must be sent within 20 working days

Use vacation auto-reply for contact person if they are away

FOI – Publication Scheme

Guide to the information which you have decided to make public

Chance to be proactive so people don’t have to make requests

Guide to types of information available NOT a list of all of it!

Scheme has to be approved by Information Commissioner

Model schemes available on Information Commissioner’s web site

JISC has model schemes available too

Put it on your College website! Some already have

FOI – Exemptions

Many exemptions, some absolute, some qualified e.g.

Commercial Interest

Communicating with the Queen

Law enforcement

Legal Professional Privilege

Parliamentary Privilege

Need to Apply Tests before using Qualified Exemptions

Prejudice & Adverse Affect

Public Interest (not same as of Interest to the Public)

FOI does not override DPA but DPA is not an excuse not to comply with FOI requests

Interaction is complex!

FOI – Vexatious or Repeated

Vexatious means:

clearly does not have any serious purpose or value

is designed to cause disruption or annoyance

has the effect of harassing the public authority

can otherwise fairly be characterised as obsessive or manifestly unreasonable.

Repeated means:

More often than a “reasonable interval”

Needs defining

Requests asking if previously requested information has changed are OK

Reply can say when info is next to be updated and a request before then would be “repeated”

FOI - Key points to note

Requests can be received by anyone within the organisation and do not need to refer to the Freedom of Information Act

Requests must be in writing (including e-mail, fax etc)

Requests must be dealt within 20 working days

No obligation to provide information which is already in the public domain/accessible by other means (e.g. via the publication scheme or in a book the organisation may hold)

No obligation to create information that the Organisation does not already hold (e.g. statistical summaries)

Organisation may charge a fee for the provision of information.

Charges must be calculated in accordance with the fees regulations prescribed by the Department for Constitutional Affairs. Currently £50 maximum.

NO

YES

NO

NO

Send the applicant a data protection subject access request form, to be returned to the University’s Data Protection Officer

Is the enquirer requesting information about him/herself?

Is the request in writing (including e-mail, fax)?

Send request to the Data Protection Officer at the University Offices

Ask the applicant to put the request into writing, and send to the Data Protection Officer at the University Offices

Is the information requested available via the Publication Scheme (check at: http://www.admin.ox.ac.uk/foi/contents.shtml) or via any other means?

Does the request relate to a living individual(s)?

Tell the applicant where he/she will be able to find the information

Does the information requested relate solely to your department or unit?

Provide the information

Is the information of a type or category for which you have been asked in the past and have given without hesitation (or would have given if you had been asked)? *

Is the request in writing (including e-mail, fax)?

Ask the applicant to use the FOI request form (at http://www.admin.ox.ac.uk/foi/

Contact

data.protection@admin.ox.ac.uk for advice

NO

YES

YES

YES

YES

YES

YES

NO

NO

Start Here

How to Deal with Enquiries

* Check that the information does not contain any reference to individuals, other than that which is already publicly available

FOI & DPA - Key Points

Don’t panic!

Need to be seen to be aware of both FOI and DPA and working within them but the Information Comissioner will always try to help before getting heavy.

Have a publication scheme and publish it!

Little or no case law yet – many grey areas, but we don’t want to be the test case!

Don’t write down anything you wouldn’t say to someone’s face.

Avoid holding sensitive personal data if you can.

Colleges need to act additionally to Central University

Resources

http://www.informationcommissioner.gov.uk/

http://www.admin.ox.ac.uk/councilsec/oxonly/dp/

http://www.admin.ox.ac.uk/foi/

http://users.ox.ac.uk/~tony/dpa-foi.ppt

http://www.jisc.ac.uk/index.cfm?name=pub_ibsm_foi

information.officer@admin.ox.ac.uk

data.protection@admin.ox.ac.uk

Conference of Colleges Legal Panel

Thanks to Sarah Cowburn at Admin for assistance and permission to use material

The Data Protection Act 1998

Tony Brett

2000-04-27T10:52:11

StCatherines