Firms Ignoring Data Protection Laws
SMEs in the West Midlands may not be adhering to fundamental data protection laws.
The claim comes in the wake of a recent report from the Information Commissioners Office (ICO) which shows that businesses are still not taking data protection seriously enough. Commissioner Richard Thomas spoke of a “horrifying” number of cases where data protection rules had been breached in the last 12 months. And the ICO, an independent public body established to promote access to official information and to protect personal information, has identified SMEs as the primary culprits.
Icomm’s Ian Callens said: “Data and information is increasingly vital to the success and growth of any business. Data protection is all about taking care of information. Organisations who don’t comply with data protection laws are consistently putting personal data of both customers and staff at risk.”
According to Icomm, businesses across the region are running the risk of incurring legal action, fines and even prison sentences should they fail to handle sensitive data correctly. Callens cites the Data Protection Act as the document Birmingham business chiefs need to be aware of.
Ian Callens, Icomm Sales Manager
The Act sets rules for anyone keeping or processing personal information on individuals. Businesses wanting to hold personal information on individuals need to comply with the rules set out and may need to notify the Information Commissioner regarding certain details.
Another element of poor data management can be felt on an operational level as data loss with no adequate back-up inevitably leads to system down time. Callens provides some preventative guidance to help firms avoid any data protection related pitfalls.
“Staff need to be aware of legislation and how it affects them. A wealth of information on this can be found on the ICO website. Firms also need to let customers aware of how their information is being used, such as credit checks or recording calls. In addition, internal IT mangers need to deploy robust network security such as firewalls, which will go a long way to ensuring company data stays within the confines of the business.”
If you require any more information on data protection please contact our Sales Team on 0121 248 7931.
2007.08.16 (AH)
