ICO: Not reporting data breach could mean tougher sanctions
2010-01-28
Organisations may have to deal with tougher penalties if they do not report data breach incidents to the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO).
More than 800 data breach incidents have been reported to the ICO in just over two years and in just over two months a further 100 organisations notified the body of such cases.
"We are keen to work with organisations to prevent breaches occurring in the first place and to help put things right when things do go wrong," commented deputy commissioner David Smith.
Even though reporting an incident may lead to regulatory action, Mr Smith stressed that companies need to act in a responsible manner when it comes to handling data.
According to the ICO, mistakes have been responsible for 195 of the 818 data breach cases reported to the body since November 2007.
The ICO recently found Southampton University Hospitals NHS Trust in breach of the Data Protection Act after an unencrypted laptop containing sensitive personal data was stolen.
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