13 Apr 2010

Do not ignore data protection

Businesses in the north-east of England have been advised that they should "ignore data protection at their peril".

The Northern Echo reported that the introduction of fines up to £500,000 from the Information Commissioner's Office should mean firms focus more effectively on safeguarding confidential customer records.

"Data protection has never enjoyed a higher profile in the media than it has today. Almost every week we hear about a data security breach affecting the public," Jackie Gray, an associate in the public services team at Newcastle-based law firm Dickinson Dees, told the publication.

As such, she claimed that companies would be foolish to ignore the warnings and to fail to put in place robust data security procedures.

Elsewhere, the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) was recently warned by the data protection commissioner that it must boost data security or face the prospect of heavy sanctions.

Indeed, a number of high-profile security lapses last year highlighted the need for improved measures in this area by the HSE.