Chi Onwurah – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chi Onwurah on 2015-10-20.

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what guidance his Department gives on (a) informing customers of data breaches and (b) how compensation for a data breach should be calculated.

Mr Edward Vaizey

Compliance with the Data Protection Act 1998 is regulated and enforced by the Information Commissioner’s Office which maintains guidance relating to the Act. Guidance on the consequences to customers of a data breach and the steps to take when informing customers about a data breach can be found at the ICO’s website https://ico.org.uk/for-organisations/guide-to-data-protection/principle-7-security/.

It would be for the courts to decide how much compensation should be awarded to an individual who has suffered damage as a result of a data breach. The ICO’s website sets out guidance on compensation: https://ico.org.uk/for-organisations/guide-to-data-protection/principle-6-rights/compensation/

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