Data protection | LocalGov

Confidential info published by hackers

05/04/2024

Confidential documents stolen during a cyber attack last month have been published online, a Leicester City Council spokesperson has confirmed.

Domestic abuse victims at risk over data breaches

28/09/2023

The information commissioner has issued a warning after having to reprimand several organisations for data breaches affecting domestic abuse victims.

Russian hackers accessed private data, council says

08/06/2023

Gloucester City Council has warned residents that some personal information may have been stolen by Russian hackers.

Councils wait for Capita reassurance

02/06/2023

Unhappy councils are seeking assurances from revenues and benefits software supplier Capita there will be no more data breaches after a number of incidents.

List of councils impacted by Capita data breach grows

19/05/2023

The number of local authorities impacted by Capita’s most recent data breach has risen to five.

Guide to protect ‘smart cities’ from hackers published

16/05/2023

The Department for Science, Innovation, and Technology (DSIT) has published a new guide to help councils keep ‘smart cities’ safe from cyber threats.

Councils disclose 1,500 data breaches

19/04/2023

UK councils have disclosed almost 1,500 data breaches in a year, according to a survey.

Combatting data theft

10/02/2023

Government has issued ‘Data Retention’ advice following an increase in ransomware attacks. AJ Thompson, Northdoor plc, explains how councils can protect data.

Councils urged to check information sharing agreements

26/01/2023

Councils are being urged to check they have adequate information sharing agreements with their providers, after one council struggled to access essential data.

Councils among top five offenders for data breaches

23/11/2022

Local authorities are one of the top offenders for data breaches across the UK, a new analysis has revealed.

Council joins forces with Airbnb to tackle housing fraud

23/08/2022

A court order has cleared the way for Kensington and Chelsea Council and Airbnb to work together to tackle social housing tenancy fraud.

Why councils must not relax data protection standards

12/07/2022

Rob Batters warns councils should not relax data protection standards in response to the ICO's new strategy.

Standard boosting algorithm transparency launched

30/11/2021

The Government today launched one of the world’s first national standard for algorithmic transparency which will impact councils using computer algorithms.

Many councils ‘not compliant’ with data protection law

30/09/2021

Only 12% of UK councils are compliant with GDPR when it comes to Article 5 principles relating to processing of personal data, a freedom of information request has revealed.

Councils reported 700 data breaches last year

28/06/2021

Councils reported more than 700 data breaches to the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) last year, according to the findings of an investigation.

Scottish council apologises for data breach

19/02/2021

Scottish Borders Council has apologised 'unreservedly' for a data breach affecting 600 customers.

Mitigating information security risks during lockdown

21/04/2020

Leeds City Council can provide a ‘piece of mind’ solution through its online data protection e-Learning course which is suitable for all staff.

Children’s personal data ‘secretly’ passed to Home Office

13/11/2019

A data watchdog has criticised the Department for Education (DfE) for secretly passing children’s personal data to the Home Office for immigration enforcement.

The safety of data on councillors’ personal devices

08/10/2019

Following the publication of the ICO data protection toolkit for local councils, Liz Page looks in detail at one of the issues highlighted: the use of councillor’s own devices being used for council work purposes.

Council investigates data breach

25/09/2019

Isle of Wight Council is investigating a data breach after it sent out council tax letters containing residents’ personal information.

Data sharing arrangements

18/07/2019

Lowri Phillips explains what public bodies should do to meet their legal obligations and minimise the risks.

ICO launches consultation on its updated data sharing code of practice

18/07/2019

The Information Commissioner’s Office is asking organisations to have their say on its updated data sharing code of practice.

How local authorities can minimise the risk of data breaches

09/04/2019

Terry Storrar outlines the key steps councils should take to prevent a security breach.

How has GDPR impacted local government?

08/04/2019

Jon Fielding explores how local government is coping with GDPR since its introduction last year.

Council fined for leak of its gang database

05/04/2019

The London Borough of Newham has been fined £145,000 by the data watchdog for revealing personal information on more than 200 people who were on a police database.

Handling telephone payments – is your council compliant?

13/03/2019

Geoff Forsyth outlines his top five tips to help councils take incoming payments securely.

Council officer fined nearly £700 for data breach

28/02/2019

A former council officer has been fined hundreds of pounds after he emailed confidential information to his partner to help her in a job interview.

Trust is paramount to the operation of smart cities

25/09/2018

Mike Pannell introduces the need to gain public trust for smart city applications and the issues of protecting the personal information.

Council apologises for decade-long data breach

30/08/2018

A Welsh council has been criticised for leaving sensitive personal information on their website for 11 years.

Council warns financial details of 6,000 people have been hacked

09/08/2018

The financial details of up to 6,000 people have been illegally accessed, a London council has warned.

Council leader resigns over alleged WhatsApp ‘data breach’

19/04/2018

The leader of St Helens Council has resigned as the police investigate allegations of a ‘possible data breach’.

Council fined £120,000 for data breach

17/04/2018

The Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea has been fined £120,000 after unlawfully publishing the details of people who owned empty properties in the borough.

Cyber security: challenging the old way of doing things

13/04/2018

Dan Davies explains why using a decentralised, peer-to-peer system could help councils protect sensitive data.

Parish councils face £3.5m yearly bill over new data protection rules

05/03/2018

It will cost parish councils over £3.5m a year to implement new data rules, the National Association of Local Councils (NALC) has warned.

London councils spend over £1m preparing for GDPR

27/02/2018

Local authorities in London have spent over £1.2m in preparation for new data protection laws, new research finds.

Councils face 19 million cyber-attacks a year

20/02/2018

Councils have been subject to over 98 million cyber-attacks in the past five years, a new investigation has revealed today.

The top 10 things local government can expect in 2018

10/01/2018

Tiffany Cloynes outlines her predictions for the top 10 issues for local government in 2018.

GDPR: Friend not foe for local government

24/11/2017

Sue MacLure explains why councils should focus on the opportunities presented by new data rules.

Ensuring outsourced IT services are secure

16/10/2017

Lowri Phillips explains how councils can protect themselves from ransomware attacks, especially if they have outsourced IT functions.

Review launched after personal details posted online by council

13/10/2017

An investigation has been launched after the personal details of around 1,400 carers, foster carers and disabled people were published online.

Getting ready for new data laws

10/10/2017

New research has shown that many councils still have work to do on data privacy policies. Keith Dewar reports.

Ex-council worker fined for stealing personal data

27/09/2017

A former employee of Leicester City Council has been fined for unlawfully obtaining the personal data of vulnerable people.

County fined £70,000 for 'serious and prolonged' data breach

01/09/2017

Nottinghamshire County Council has apologised for leaving vulnerable people’s personal information exposed online after being fined £70,000 by data protection watchdogs.

GDPR and the implications for local authorities as employers

31/08/2017

Incoming General Data Protection Regulations have challenged local authorities to re-evaluate how they handle personal data, but they must not forget their new responsibilities as employers, says Mark Leach

Council to investigate email data breach

30/08/2017

Plymouth City Council has suspended all automated emails relating to council tax after discovering customers could see each other's email addresses.

Nearly 70% of councils yet to comply with privacy regulations, FoIs reveal

29/08/2017

The ‘vast majority’ of local authorities in the UK are not yet able to comply with the ‘right-to-be-forgotten’ stipulations of data protection regulations due to come into force next year.

Council fined due to security risk of ‘flawed’ parking ticket system

18/08/2017

Islington Council has received a £70,000 fine after an investigation found it failed to secure the personal details of up to 89,000 people on its parking ticket system.

Council ‘truly sorry’ for adoption data breach

18/07/2017

A council has apologised after a data protection breach revealed the personal details of thousands of people involved in the adoption process.

Councils yet to budget for new data protection rules

06/07/2017

Four out of five councils have yet to allocate funding towards meeting the new requirements of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), survey reveals.

Council issued enforcement notice over data protection training

13/06/2017

Medway Council has been given six months to ensure all staff are given data protection training by the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO).

Human error responsible for most local gov data breaches

01/06/2017

The local government sector had the second highest share of all data breach incidents over the last two years, and most were due to human error, new research reveals.

Council fined £150,000 for publishing personal data about family

01/06/2017

An Essex council has been fined £150,000 for publishing sensitive personal information in an online planning application document.

Personal data of millions of citizens put at risk by councils

03/05/2017

Local authorities are putting the personal data of 3.5 million citizens at risk by not having a Disaster Recovery (DR) plan in place, research reveals.

'Glitch' in car parking app causes serious data breach

18/04/2017

An update of a car parking app used by councils across the country has exposed users to a serious data breach.

A quarter of councils yet to appoint a data protection officer

21/03/2017

A quarter of councils do not have a data protection officer, while a third are failing to complete privacy impact assessments, a new survey has revealed.

Council fined £60,000 for sending sensitive files to second hand shop

21/03/2017

A county council has been fined £60,000 after leaving sensitive information about children in a cabinet sent to a second hand shop.

Councils without BYOD policy 'risk data leakage'

17/02/2017

Local authorities are putting data at risk by not implementing a ‘Bring Your Own Device’ (BYOD) policy, analysts warn.

Mass data breach at Nottinghamshire council

24/11/2016

The police are investigating a possible mass breach of data protection laws in a Nottinghamshire council.

London council criticised after social worker leaves court documents on car roof

16/11/2016

A London council has pledged to improve its data protection practices after a social worker lost sensitive court documents.

The impact of EU Data Protection Regulations on IT asset disposal

09/11/2016

James Burkimsher explains why councils will need robust IT asset disposal policies in plan to avoid costly penalties for data breaches.

Councils vulnerable to cyber attacks due to low IT security spend, finds research

26/10/2016

Councils spend eight times more on health and safety training than on IT security and data protection courses combined, new research reveals.

Councils ‘struggling’ to prevent loss of sensitive data

06/09/2016

A small yet significant number of local authorities are ‘struggling’ to prevent the loss of sensitive data, according to a freedom of information (FoI) request.

Councils report 14% more security breaches in past year

01/09/2016

The local government sector reported 202 security breaches to the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) in the past 12 months, an increase of 14% from the year before.

County fined for leaving ‘sensitive’ documents in disused building

16/08/2016

Hampshire County Council has been fined thousands of pounds after documents containing personal details of over 100 people were found in a disused building.

A rethink on data protection is needed to keep council channel shift plans on track

31/03/2016

With security incidents in local government becoming more frequent, Chris Brine-Howe, chief information security officer at arvato UK & Ireland, explains that authorities need to put the right data protection processes in place to keep online services secure and avoid substantial fines from forthcoming regulations.

Councils must reform information governance arrangements, says Socitm

31/03/2016

Councils should review their information governance arrangements ahead of impending changes to data protection and online privacy laws, warns Socitm.

Security: a question of priority

18/03/2016

Many organisations worry that the data collection involved in concepts like the Smart City will embroil them in an Orwellian nightmare of data security management. Actually, says Neil Mellor, it’s all about priorities.

New group to drive digital reforms

10/11/2015

A new ministerial group has been launched to help drive through reforms to digital public services and improve data security.

Welsh council criticised for failings in data protection

07/10/2015

Anglesey County Council has been warned to improve its data protection practices by the Information Commissioner Office (ICO), who said the council has ‘repeatedly failed’ to address security and privacy issues.

Council launches risk business

11/09/2015

A risk and insurance trading company has been launched by Lambeth Council to help fund services and community good causes.

The insider threat

01/09/2015

Joel Dolisy asks if insider threats are now a bigger challenge to local councils than hackers?

How to avoid mishandling data

12/08/2015

With calls for council staff to face custodial sentences for data breaches, what key actions can be taken to safeguard against losing, leaking or having data stolen?

Councils attacked for ‘shockingly lax’ attitude to data security

11/08/2015

Local authorities recorded 4,236 data breaches over a three year period, according to a new report from privacy campaign group Big Brother Watch.

Public bodies leaking private data once a fortnight warns website

16/07/2015

Public authorities have accidentally released personal information at least once a fortnight since 2009, according to analysis by mySociety.

ICO needs 'more muscle' over council data breaches

04/06/2015

Calls have been raised for stronger central powers over council data breaches, after an investigation revealed 129 leaks were reported last year.

Warning: Your data is escaping

02/06/2015

Diana Wong explains why local authorities need to understand the digital footprint of employees

Research shows data breaches ‘commonplace’ in local government

21/05/2015

More than half of all local authorities (55%) have suffered from a data breach in the past two years, with just one council reporting 213 breaches, new figures have revealed.

Council promises ‘robust’ investigation into data breach

24/03/2015

Colchester Borough Council has apologised and promised a ‘rigorous’ investigation into the breach of benefit claimants’ personal data.

IT security in local government

20/01/2015

James Bindseil examines the ongoing conflict between compliance vs. staff productivity

Data breaches costing local government millions, FOI reveals

05/12/2014

Data breaches have cost local government over £2.3m in fines since 2010, with council organisations named some of the worst for protecting confidential information.

Study raises questions over data security in public sector

25/11/2014

Over three-quarters of IT decision makers in the public sector believe their chief executive does not take security seriously enough, a new study reveals.

Local authorities: facing up to data loss

23/09/2014

Why local government must improve data security to protect both its staff and the information assets it holds

Councils need to improve data protection compliance warns watchdog

27/08/2014

Local authorities are failing to achieve the highest standard for compliance with the Data Protection Act, according to a new report.

Close to home

06/08/2014

Why employees represent the biggest threat to public sector data

Charity calls on councils to 'do the right thing'

16/07/2014

Almost half of councils are failing to routinely inform children’s centres about new births in their area, a new report by The Children’s Society charity has found.

Data sharing laws need clarifying says report

14/07/2014

Data sharing rules are complex and inconsistent and should be reformed by the government, according to a new report.

Wolverhampton trains staff and councillors after data warning

08/07/2014

Every employee and elected member at Wolverhampton City Council has received training in data protection following concerns raised by inspectors.

Public sector says staff are biggest data threat

18/06/2014

Employees pose the biggest threat to public data, according to a new survey into security.

Council apologies for benefits data breach

02/06/2014

A council has apologised after it accidentally leaked the personal details of housing benefit claimants when answering a freedom of information request.

ICO hits Wolverhampton with data breach training order

29/05/2014

Wolverhampton City Council has been ordered to train staff in data protection after showing a ‘startling’ lack of urgency over information security.

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