Manchester City Council Breach the Data Protection Act
The theft of two laptops containing personal details relating to 1754 employees has left Manchester City Council in breach of the Data Protection Act, the Information Commissioners Office reported today.
The data lost related to employees at local schools, neither of the laptops were encrypted. Sir Howard Bernstein, Chief Executive of Manchester City Council has signed a formal undertaking to ensure all laptops and other removable devices are encrypted and kept secured.
Head of Enforcement & Investigations at the ICO, Sally-anne Poole, said: “We urge all councils and their executive teams to take responsibility for trating data protection as a corporate governance issue affecting the entire organisation. They have to make sure that safeguarding the personal information of their staff is embedded in their organisational culture.”
“The Data Protection Act clearly states that organisations must take appropriate measures to ensure that personal information is kept secure. Manchester City Council recognises the seriousness of this data loss and has agreed to take immediate action.”
