DATA PROTECTION

1. INTRODUCTION

1.1 Purpose of Policy

I need to gather and use certain information about individuals.

These can include clients, suppliers, employees, and other people that I have a business relationship with or may need to contact.

This policy describes how this personal data will be collected, handled and stored to comply with the General Data Protection Regulation.

1.2 Policy Statement

I am committed to a policy of protecting the rights and privacy of clients, staff and others in accordance with General Data Protection Regulation.

I commit to:

Comply with both the law and good practice
Respect individuals’ rights
Be open and honest with individuals whose data is held
Provide training and support to staff who handle personal data, so that they can act confidently and consistently
Register my details with the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO)

1.3 Personal Data

I may hold data for the following purposes:

Provision of direct healthcare
Case histories

Special categories of data include race, ethnic origin, politics, religion, trade union membership, genetics, biometrics (where used for ID purposes), health and sexual orientation. From this list I may hold special category data for the following purposes:

Provision of direct healthcare

1.4 Data Protection Principles

There are six data protection principles that are core to the General Data Protection Regulation. I will make every possible effort to comply with these principles at all times in my information-handling practices. The principles are:

Lawful, fair and transparent
Data collection must be fair, for a legal purpose and I must be open and transparent as to how the data will be used.
Limited for its purpose
Data can only be collected for a specific purpose
Data minimisation
Any data collected must be necessary and not excessive for its purpose
Accurate
The data I hold must be accurate and kept up to date
Retention
I cannot store data longer than necessary
Integrity and confidentiality
The data I hold must be kept safe and secure

1.5 Key Risks

The key risks are in two areas:

Information about individuals getting into the wrong hands, through poor security or inappropriate disclosure of information
Individuals being harmed through data being inaccurate or insufficient

2. RESPONSIBILITIES

I am the data controller for all personal data held by me and I am responsible for:

Analysing and documenting the type of personal data I hold
Checking procedures to ensure they cover all the rights of the individual
Identifying the lawful basis for processing data
Ensuring consent procedures are lawful
Implementing and reviewing procedures to detect, report and investigate personal data breaches
Storing data in safe and secure ways
Assessing the risk that could be posed to individual rights and freedoms should data be compromised

3. DATA RECORDING, SECURITY & STORAGE

3.1 Data accuracy and relevance

I will ensure that any personal data I process is accurate, adequate, relevant and not excessive, given the purpose for which it was obtained. I will not process personal data obtained for one purpose for any unconnected purpose unless the individual has agreed to this or would otherwise reasonably expect this.

3.2 Data Security

I will keep personal data secure against loss or misuse. Where other organisations process personal data as a service on my behalf, I will establish what, if any, additional specific data security arrangements need to be implemented in contracts with those third-party organisations.

3.3 Storing data securely

In cases when data is stored on printed paper, it will be kept in a secure place (locked filing cabinet in my home office)
Printed data will be shredded when it is no longer needed
Data stored on a computer will be protected by strong passwords that are changed regularly
Data stored on CDs or memory sticks will be encrypted or password protected and locked away securely when they are not being used
Any cloud services used to store personal data will be assessed for compliance with GDPR principles. An authenticator app will be used to access cloud data
Servers containing personal data must be kept in a secure location, away from general office space as applicable
Data will be regularly backed up
All servers containing sensitive data must be protected by security software
All possible technical measures will be put in place to keep data secure

3.4 Data Retention

I will retain personal data for no longer than is necessary. This shall be in accordance with the guidelines of my professional association FNTP.

4. ACCOUNTABILITY & TRANSPARENCY

I will ensure accountability and transparency in all my use of personal data. I will keep written up-to-date records of all the data processing activities that I do and ensure that they comply with each of the GDPR principles.

I will regularly review my data processing activities and implement measures to ensure privacy by design including data minimisation, pseudonymisation, transparency and continuously improving security and enhanced privacy procedures.

5. CONSENT

I will ensure that consents are specific, informed and plain English such that individuals clearly understand why their information will be collected, who it will be shared with, and the possible consequences of them agreeing or refusing the proposed use of the data. Consents will be granular to provide choice as to which data will be collected and for what purpose. I will seek explicit consent wherever possible.

I will maintain an audit trail of consent by documenting details of consent received including who consented, when, how, what for, and if and when they withdraw consent.

I will regularly review consents and seek to refresh them if anything changes.

6. DIRECT MARKETING

Before conducting any direct marketing activities, I will ensure that I comply with both data protection law and Privacy and Electronic Communication Regulations 2003 (PECR) when sending any electronic marketing messages. PECR restricts the circumstances in which we can market to people and other organisations by phone, text, email or other electronic means.

I will seek explicit consent for direct marketing by requesting a subscriber sign up or other appropriate means. I will provide a simple way to opt out of marketing messages and to be able to respond to any complaints.

7. SUBJECT ACCESS REQUESTS

7.1 What is a subject access request?

An individual has the right to receive confirmation that their data is being processed, access to their personal data and supplementary information which means the information should be provided in a privacy notice.

7.2 How to deal with subject access requests

I will provide an individual with a soft copy of the information requested, free of charge. This will occur within one month of receipt. I endeavour to provide data subjects access to their information in commonly used electronic formats.

If complying with the request is complex or numerous, the deadline can be extended by two months, but the individual will be informed within one month.

I can refuse to respond to certain requests, and can, in circumstances of the request being manifestly unfounded or excessive, charge a fee. If the request is for a large quantity of data, I can request the individual specify the information they are requesting.

Once a subject access request has been made, I will not change or amend any of the data that has been requested. Doing so is a criminal offence.

7.3 Data portability requests

I will provide the data requested in a structured, commonly used and machine-readable format. This would normally be a word or PDF file, or subject to charge, a printed copy. I must provide this data either to the individual who has requested it, or to the data controller they have requested it be sent to within one month, with exceptions noted at 7.2 above.

8. TRANSFERRING DATA INTERNATIONALLY

There are restrictions on international transfers of personal data. I will not transfer data abroad without express consent.

9. THIRD PARTIES

9.1 Using third party controllers and processors

As a data controller and/or data processor, I will have written contracts in place with any third-party data controllers and/or data processors that I use. The contract will contain specific clauses which set out my and their liabilities, obligations and responsibilities.

As a data controller, I will only appoint processors who can provide sufficient guarantees under GDPR and confirming that the rights of data subjects will be respected and protected.

As a data processor, I will only act on the documented instructions of a controller. I acknowledge my responsibilities as a data processor under GDPR and I will protect and respect the rights of data subjects.

9.2 Contracts

My contracts will comply with the standards set out by the ICO and, where possible, follow standard contractual clauses. My contracts with data controllers and/or data processors will set out the subject matter and duration of the processing, the nature and stated purpose of the processing activities, the types of personal data and categories of data subject, and the obligations and rights of the controller.

10. REPORTING BREACHES

Any breach of this policy or of data protection laws likely to result in a risk to the rights and freedoms of individuals will be reported as soon as practically possible. This means as soon as I become aware of a breach.

I have a legal obligation to report any data breaches likely to result in a risk to the rights and freedoms of individuals, to the relevant UK supervisory authority which is the Information Commissioners Office within 72 hours.