MPs Want Porridge for Data Protection Cheats

MPs on the UK Parliament's Justice Committee have argued for tougher action on breaches of the Data Protection Act, including custodial sentences.

The Committee's report to the government this week argues that current penalties are insufficient to serve as a serious deterrent to companies and individuals who can often make more from the data than they stand to lose if they are caught. Committee Chairman Sir Alan Beith said using deception to obtain personal information and / or selling it on without permission were 'serious offences that can cause great harm', and added: 'Magistrates and Judges need to be able to hand out custodial sentences when serious misuses of personal information come to light. Parliament has provided that power, but Ministers have not yet brought it into force - they must do so.'

MPs also said the Information Commissioner lacks the power to force information audits on private sector organisations, which mean that potential misuses of personal data are not fully investigated. As an example, the report suggests that such audits might have uncovered much earlier abuses by insurance companies and personal injury lawyers, which are now being tackled by the government's ban on referral fees in personal injury cases.

UK legislators have recent form in ramping up previously feeble penalties for corporate transgressions in the field of data protection and public nuisance. Just over a year ago, telecoms regulator Ofcom announced a stiffening of fines for companies making an excessive number of silent calls, raising them from a few thousand to a maximum of £2m; while six months earlier the office of the country's Information Commissioner, Christopher Graham, grew 'very sharp teeth' when fines were raised from £5,000 to £500,000. However magistrates remain shackled by a ceiling of £5,000 for offences.

Like their US counterparts, UK legislators have also taken a strong recent interest in behavioural targeting and the storage of personal data, and in July a group of 13 MPs tabled a motion expressing concern about online privacy, with particular reference to WPP's proposed ad-oriented database of half a billion Internet users.

All articles 2006-23 written and edited by Mel Crowther and/or Nick Thomas, 2024- by Nick Thomas, unless otherwise stated.