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ICO publishes useful guides on the new GDPR

Head of policy and engagement at the Information Commissioner’s Office, Jo Pedder, points to useful guidance on the new EU General Data Protection Regulation that is set to come into force come May 2018.

The regulation will bring in some major changes as to how organisations are expected to look after personal data and the responsibilities in disclosing them to the authorities and affected individuals. The changes could mean huge punishments for organisations who fail to take their data protection responsibilities seriously.
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Dyfed-Powys Police Force signs undertaking after multiple data breaches reported

Dyfed-Powys Police Force in Wales signed an undertaking with the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) after a number of data breaches over an 18 month period were identified.

The ICO was alerted to the seriousness of multiple incidents that indicated a potential lack of data protection training and protocols. Although none of the breaches appear to have had any underlying malicious intent, the ICO recognised the seriousness of the repeated data breaches.
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Equifax hack compromised 15.2 million U.K. records

The gigantic Equifax data breach that saw 143 million U.S. customers have their sensitive credit information breached also affected 15.2 million U.K. records as well. There are thought to be some 700,000 U.K. victims of the breach who may have had their personal and sensitive information stolen.

Equifax has said they will reach out to victims by post to notify them of the data breach and offer free access to some form of data risk mitigation service.
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‘Reaper’ Botnet the latest threat to internet-connected devices

Warnings over a new hacking botnet called ‘Reaper‘ have been issued. It has been identified as the latest major cybersecurity risk to devices connected to the internet, and first emerged in October 2017.

Cybersecurity company Check Point reports that over a million internet connected devices have already been infected, and it doesn’t look like the botnet will be stopped anytime soon. They warn “our research suggests we are now experiencing the calm before an even more powerful storm. The next cyber hurricane is about to come.”
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Businesses need to communicate more about their data breaches; before and after they happen.

Data breaches can be very embarrassing for a business. Being attacked by hackers can undermine the control the business has over its own systems and databases, and it can hamper the loyalty of their customers.

The embarrassment can be even worse if the data breach occurred as a result of an employee error.

After a data breach, the trends we witness for an affected business vary depending on how a breach is handled… For businesses that try to conceal a breach and are found out via other channels the backlash can be brutal as share prices drop, customers leave to do business elsewhere and the reputation of the brand takes a battering in the media.
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Are British businesses sweeping data breaches under the carpet?

With the General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR) looming, it seems that British businesses may have a long way to go when it comes to straightening up to comply with the new European regulations.

They come in to force in May next year – the clock is ticking!

It appears that firms in Britain may reportedly have a culture of keeping data breaches a secret and not reporting them; perhaps for fear of repercussions or simply because they don’t know what to do. But such behaviour simply will not do…
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66% of small-to-medium businesses could “shut down” in the event of a data breach

Computer Antivirus provider Vipre recently conducted a study to see how small-to-medium businesses (SMB) would be impacted by a data breach.

The findings were startling – they indicated that, in the event of a data breach, up to two-thirds of these companies could either go out of business completely or have to shut down for at least one day.

Practically, this is very concerning.
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Yet another NHS worker fined for accessing sensitive medical records without authorisation

It seems the NHS can’t keep its staff under control as yet another worker has been found guilty of accessing sensitive medical records without authorisation.

Linda Reeves reportedly abused her position as a former data coordinator with access to the Trust’s patient database by rifling through medical records belonging to colleagues, friends and neighbours. She did not have any consent or authorisation from patients or her employer as the data controller.

Reeves has since resigned from her job at The University Hospitals of North Midlands NHS Trust.
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Nottinghamshire County Council fined £70,000 for leaving data belonging to vulnerable people exposed for 5 years

The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) issued Nottinghamshire County Council a fine of £70,000.00 for leaving sensitive personal data exposed online for half a decade.

The watchdog discovered the council’s ‘Home Care Allocation System’ (HCAS) was shared with care home providers using a simple link that did not require a username or a password.

The system contained a lot of personal information belonging to prospective and current care home users. Created in July 2011, the council was finally alerted to the security risk when a member of the public searched for HCAS online in June 2016 and found files readily accessible and completely unrestricted.
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Leicester city council worker fined for stealing sensitive personal data to use for his own business

Nilesh Morar worked for Leicester City Council in the Adult Social Care Department where he reportedly stole a wealth of personal sensitive data for personal financial gain.

He reportedly took the information belonging to vulnerable people without the Council’s knowledge or permission.

After he stole the personal data, Morar left his job with the Council to set up his own business, so the motives for stealing the data seem quite apparent.
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