Statement update: 25 October 2018 Following news that more people may have been affected by a breach at British Airways, an ICO spokesperson said: “The ICO’s investigation into a cyber attack at British Airways is ongoing. Meanwhile, we advise people who may have been affected to be vigilant when checking their financial records and to follow the advice on the ICO, National Cyber Security Centre and Action Fraud websites about how they can protect themselves and their data online.” Statement: 7 September 2018 An ICO spokesperson said: …
Month: October 2018
ICO issues maximum £500,000 fine to Facebook for failing to protect users’ personal information
The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) has fined Facebook £500,000 for serious breaches of data protection law. In July, the ICO issued a Notice of Intent to fine Facebook as part of a wide ranging investigation into the use of data analytics for political purposes. After considering representations from the company, the ICO has issued the fine to Facebook and confirmed that the amount – the maximum allowable under the laws which applied at the time the incidents occurred – will remain unchanged. The full penalty notice can be read here.…
UK Information Commissioner elected chair of the International Conference of Data Protection and Privacy Commissioners
Elizabeth Denham, the UK’s Information Commissioner, has today been elected Chair of the International Conference of Data Protection and Privacy Commissioners (ICDPPC). Now in its fortieth year, the ICDPPC is the leading global forum of data protection and privacy authorities, encompassing more than 120 members across all continents. The ICDPPC works throughout the year on global data protection policy issues, adopts resolutions and statements addressed to governments and policymakers, and arranges a highly successful annual conference. On accepting her post, Elizabeth Denham said: “In the age of borderless data…
ICO’s blog on its international work
Colleagues from across the organisation share their experiences and involvement in the ICO’s ongoing contributions to the upholding of information rights across the globe. 23 October 2018 Elizabeth Denham announced as the new chair of the International Conference of Data Protection and Privacy Commissioners (ICDPPC) Elizabeth Denham was announced as the new chair of the International Conference of Data Protection and Privacy Commissioners (ICDPPC) on 23 October 2018. She said: “In the age of borderless data flows, there has never been a more important time for global coherence in data…
New data protection self-assessment checklist for sole traders
The ICO has today launched a self-assessment checklist that will help sole traders and self-employed individuals to assess their compliance with new data protection laws. The checklist is aimed at improving understanding of data protection and making sure sole traders are keeping people’s personal data secure. The new Data Protection Act 2018 and the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) came into force in May and the self-assessment checklist is part of a range of resources to raise awareness within the sole trader and self-employed community. It shows sole traders how…
ICO fines firm £90,000 for nuisance emails about pre-paid funeral plans
The Information Commissioner has fined London-based marketing company, Boost Finance Ltd (BFL), a company responsible for millions of nuisance emails about pre-paid funeral plans. Trading as findmeafuneralplan.com, BFL was behind 4,396,780 emails that were sent from January to September 2017. The emails were sent to people who had subscribed to websites operated by BFL’s affiliates, but who had not given their consent to receive them. The ICO investigation found that in all but one of the websites, it was not made obvious who the emails were from – although they…
Heathrow Airport Limited fined £120,000 for serious failings in its data protection practices
Heathrow Airport Limited (HAL) has been fined £120,000 by the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) for failing to ensure that the personal data held on its network was properly secured. On 16 October 2017 a member of the public found a USB memory stick, which had been lost by a HAL employee. The stick, which contained 76 folders and over 1,000 files was not encrypted or password protected. The member of the public viewed the material it contained at a local library. Although the amount of personal and sensitive personal data held…
New ICO hub to support innovation
The ICO has been awarded funding to provide data privacy expertise to other UK regulators to ensure rules and regulations keep pace with technologies of the future. The £537,000 grant to the ICO will establish a Regulators’ Business and Privacy Innovation Hub this month, which will work in partnership with other regulators to provide expert support to businesses in information privacy and data protection – helping them build-in data protection by design and have the confidence to create innovative products and services. It’s part of the £10m Regulators’ Pioneer Fund from the Department of Business, Energy and Industrial…
Game On! ‘Crypto Arcade Playground’ to Help Indie Developers Compete With Giant Studios
For small indie game developers, the advent of Apple’s App Store and Google Play has proven to be both a blessing and a curse. While one-man bands were able to upstage some of the world’s largest game publishers initially – Flappy Bird, anyone? – established studios have started to catch up, with competition in the marketplace rife and high commission fees eating into already tight profit margins. However, a decentralized “crypto arcade playground” is hoping to help smaller creators survive and succeed by enabling them to target gamers through blockchain…