Press releases

The ICO is committed to raising awareness of data protection and freedom of information rights, and to encouraging good practice. A full list of the press releases from previous years can be accessed via our archive.

February

09 Feb 10 - Labour Party found in breach of privacy rules
The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) has served an enforcement notice on the Labour Party after it breached the Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations (PECR). The enforcement action, by the UK privacy watchdog, follows an investigation which revealed that the party had made unsolicited automated marketing calls without consent to almost half a million individuals.

08 Feb 10 - The ICO’s statement regarding the Department for Transport
The Department for Transport (DfT) has been accused by the Conservative MP Justine Greening of destroying sensitive documents relating to the expansion of Heathrow Airport. Justine Greening used the Freedom of Information Act to demand copies of emails about the expansion scheme. The ICO has issued a statement.

01 Feb 10 - ICO Statement on the Lord Ashcroft undertaking
The Information Commissioner has ordered the Cabinet Office to release information about an undertaking given by Michael, now Lord, Ashcroft in March 2000 concerning his intention to take up permanent residence in the UK on taking his seat in the House of Lords. A spokesperson for the Information Commissioner has issued a statement.

01 Feb 10 - ATL agrees to improve information security after thousands of union members’ personal details are stolen
The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) has found the Association of Teachers and Lecturers (ATL) in breach of the Data Protection Act after a laptop and memory stick were reported lost or stolen, containing the personal details of over 6,000 union members.

January

28 Jan 10 - ICO to help keep Vale of Glamorgan children safe online
Stanwell School in Penarth has joined forces with the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) to educate children in the Vale of Glamorgan to stay safe online as part of a new national initiative called the ‘i in online’, which is officially launched on Data Protection Day 2010 (28 January).

28 Jan 10 - ICO to help keep Linlithgow children safe online
Donaldson’s School in Linlithgow has joined forces with the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) to educate children and young people to stay safe online as part of a new national initiative called ‘the i in online’, which is officially launched on Data Protection Day 2010 (28 January).

28 Jan 10 - ICO to help keep Belfast children safe online
Lagan College in Belfast has joined forces with the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) to educate children to stay safe online as part of a new national initiative called the ‘i in online’, which is officially launched on Data Protection Day 2010 (28 January).

28 Jan 10 - ICO to help keep Cheshire children safe online
Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) has joined forces with a new national initiative called the ‘i in online’, which is officially launched on Data Protection Day 2010 (28 January), to educate children in Cheshire to stay safe online.

26 Jan 10 - Report data breaches or risk tougher sanctions, warns the ICO
Over 800 data security breaches have been reported to the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) in just over two years, the privacy watchdog announces today. The ICO is warning that organisations may face tougher sanctions if they fail to report security breaches which subsequently come to light.

25 Jan 10 - ICO statement on trading of Ladbrokes customers’ personal data
Yesterday's Mail on Sunday reported that the details of millions of gamblers have been offered for sale to the Mail on Sunday. The Daily Mail handed all the details over to the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) and alerted Ladbrokes of the security breach. The ICO has issued a statement.

22 Jan 10 - Privacy watchdog takes action after thousands of health records are stolen
Mark Hackett, the Chief Executive of Southampton University Hospitals NHS Trust (SUHT), has made a formal commitment to improve data security after the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) found SUHT in breach of the Data Protection Act.

18 Jan 10 - ICO publishes guidance on going to court in Northern Ireland to enforce their information rights
The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) has published new guidance to help individuals in Northern Ireland take a claim to court under the Data Protection Act.

18 Jan 10 - Social work records found in second-hand filing cabinet
The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) has found Lancashire County Council in breach of the Data Protection Act after social work records containing sensitive personal data relating to several individuals were found in a filing cabinet purchased second-hand by a member of the public. The Council has now signed an Undertaking promising to implement a formal written procedure for the removal or disposal of any office furniture or equipment.

13 Jan 10 - ICO statement on Guardian newspaper correction
The Guardian newspaper has corrected an inaccurate article. Monday’s Guardian ('Campbell had Iraq dossier changed to fit US claims', 11 January, page 7) noted that the Information Commissioner accidentally released documents to a reporter. This was incorrect and the Guardian’s correction appears in today’s paper and online.

13 Jan 10 - Keep an eye on your credit file and avoid financial problems
The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) is urging consumers to ensure that their credit reference file is accurate and up to date in 2010. Millions of consumers will use credit to help them through the year and it is essential that they make sure the information accessed by lenders is accurate. If the content of an individual’s credit reference file is wrong or out of date, banks, shops and catalogue companies could turn down their request for credit.

12 Jan 10 - Data breaches to incur up to £500,000 penalty
New powers, designed to deter personal data security breaches, are expected to come into force on 6 April 2010. The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) will be able to order organisations to pay up to £500,000 as a penalty for serious breaches of the Data Protection Act. The ICO has produced statutory guidance about how it proposes to use this new power, which has been approved by the Secretary of State for Justice, and has been laid before Parliament today.

11 Jan 10 - Action taken after personal details found in waste bins
The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) has found Bellgrange Mortgages and Insurance Services Ltd in breach of the Data Protection Act after clients’ details were found in two large waste bins intended for the use of local residents. The organisation, based in Stanmore, has signed an official Undertaking to improve data security.

07 Jan 10 - Physical restraint methods used against children should be made public
The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) has decided that it is in the public interest to disclose details about the methods used to restrain children and young people in secure training centres. The restraint methods include so-called distraction techniques which can involve deliberately inflicting pain on children.