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Data protection and privacy

Data protection and privacy are matters of professional concern to accountants in practice, industry or commerce. Organisations that collect, store or process personal information (personal data) on living and identifiable people (data subjects) must comply with the Data Protection Act 2018 and the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). Other relevant data protection and privacy legislation includes the Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations (PECR), the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) and the Data Protection (Charges and Information) Regulations 2018. This content is not intended to constitute legal advice. Specific legal advice should be sought before taking or refraining from taking any action in relation to the matters outlined.

In this section

FAQs, helpsheets and guidance

ICAEW Know How: Right to erasure

This guide summarises the general erasure obligations set out in GDPR, the exceptions available under GDPR and the DPA 2018 and provides practical interpretation of these in relation to various example service offerings that may be provided by ICAEW members.

ICAEW Know-How: Personal data breaches

The Data Protection Act 2018 (DPA 2018) came into force on 25 May 2018 to replace the Data Protection Act 1998. It sits alongside the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). This guide is part of a series that explain some of the new or more difficult concepts introduced by the DPA 2018 and the GDPR.

Articles and features

Legal considerations

Dr Sam De Silva, Partner and Global Co Head of the Commercial Practice Group at international law firm, CMS Cameron McKenna Nabarro Olswang LLP (CMS) and member of the ICAEW Tech Board, shares his thoughts on the legal and regulatory issues you should consider when using generative AI in your organisation.

How could your professional liability combined cover protect your accountancy business further?

In the current business landscape, accountants face numerous challenges in providing their services efficiently and effectively. One important aspect often overlooked is the need for comprehensive office insurance. Marsh Commercial explain how office insurance offers protection against a range of risks and potential liabilities that can threaten the stability and reputation of your business.

Generative AI at watershed moment with spate of legal challenges

The article focuses on the legal challenges surrounding generative artificial intelligence (AI) and its implications for copyright laws, data protection, and the control of personal data. It also discusses the concerns related to the use of copyrighted data for training AI models and the potential impact on cultural industries.

Webinars and recordings

Evaluating the risk of cyber-crime and data breach

Are you doing enough to manage the risk of cyber-crime and data breach in your business? Marsh Commercial will focus on the risk of cyber specifically to small practitioners, and may highlight the gaps in your cover that are leaving your business exposed.

What's your data strategy?

Demystifying data. Before organisations can gain any value from data it is critical to have a clear data strategy that ties into an organisation's overall strategy.

Disclaimer: The opinions expressed by external guest speakers in interviews or other publications included on this website are, by their nature, those of the speaker. They are not necessarily fully endorsed by the ICAEW or purport to reflect the official policies and views of the ICAEW or its members.

Legal Alert is a monthly checklist from Atom Content Marketing highlighting new and pending laws, regulations, codes of practice and rulings that could have an impact on your business. Find out more about Atom Content Marketing

Legal Alert - July 2023

A monthly checklist from Atom Content Marketing highlighting new and pending laws, regulations, codes of practice and rulings that could have an impact on your business.

Disclaimer: These publications from Atom Content Marketing are for general guidance only, for businesses in the United Kingdom governed by the laws of England. Atom Content Marketing, expert contributors and ICAEW (as distributor) disclaim all liability for any errors or omissions.

eBooks

The Library & Information Service provides a hand-picked collection of eBooks as a benefit of membership. If you are unable to access an eBook, please see our Help and support or contact library@icaew.com

The Data Protection Act 1998

This section looks at the definitions in the Act, the rights conferred on data subjects and the data protection principles.

Personnel records and data protection

This chapter of the handbook looks at what personnel records an organisation should keep, data protection (please note this section has not been updated to reflect the Data Protection Act 2018 /GPPR) and the monitoring of e-mail and telephone calls. A sample e-mail and internet policy is supplied.

EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR): A practical guide, The

This handbook offers advice on the practical implementation of GDPR and analyses its impact. The guide examines the scope of GDPR, the organisational and material requirements for data protection, the rights of data subjects, the role of the Supervisory Authorities, enforcement and fines under the GDPR, and differences between EU jurisdictions.

Terms of use: You are permitted to access, download, copy, or print out content from eBooks for your own research or study only, subject to the terms of use set by our suppliers and any restrictions imposed by individual publishers. Please see individual supplier pages for full terms of use.

The Library & Information Service provides a hand-picked collection of industry press articles as a benefit of membership. If you are unable to access an article, please see our Help and support or contact library@icaew.com

Getting data sorted

The article focuses on data classification as a pre-requisite for data protection, security, and compliance, and it explores the tools available for data classification, including offerings from major tech companies as well as open-source options. It mentions these tools use machine learning and artificial intelligence to automate data classification, ensuring accurate data management and governance.

ICO under fire for taking limited action over potentially life-threatening data breaches

The article focuses on criticism directed towards Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) for its limited enforcement action against Thames Valley Police (TVP) and the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) regarding serious data protection failures that jeopardized the safety of witnesses and prisoners.

Managing people's data ethically

Article discusses how Ai-driven decisions have led to discrimination against women and minorities in recruitment, criminal sentencing, medical diagnosis and credit approval and led to thousand of fines under GDPR. An overview of a robust ethical review is given and the 'Five Ps of ethical data handling'

Terms of use: You are permitted to access articles subject to the terms of use set by our suppliers and any restrictions imposed by individual publishers. Please see individual supplier pages for full terms of use.

Useful links

General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)

Regulation (EU) 2016/679 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 April 2016 on the protection of natural persons with regard to the processing of personal data and on the free movement of such data, and repealing Directive 95/46/EC (General Data Protection Regulation)

Guide to the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR)

Guide from the ICO explaining the provisions of the UK GDPR and what organisations need to do to comply with its requirements. Includes ‘In brief’ summaries and checklists as well as more detailed content in key areas.

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