Hi All
Nearly, but not quite?
The wording of Art 33 is such that it expects notification, unless it can be shown that the breach is unlikely to risk individual rights & freedoms. So, whether or not this particular case needed to be reported would really seem to depend on how well the initial response and containment had worked.
In this case I would be notifying the right John Smith though, irrespective of whether or not the ICO ended up in the mix, just in the hope of heading off future grumbles and suchlike.
Regards,
Owen
Owen Thomas
Deputy Data Protection Officer
Data Protection Office
Strategy, Performance and Transformation Directorate
Sunderland City Council
0191 5611263
Subject:
Re: Notifiable breach - straw poll
From:
"Speirs, Seth" <[log in to unmask]>
Reply-To:
Speirs, Seth
Date:
Tue, 16 Oct 2018 14:51:43 +0000
Content-Type:
text/plain
Parts/Attachments:
Parts/Attachments text/plain (1 lines)
Reply Reply
In the words of the GDPR you have to be able to demonstrate a risk to the individuals rights and freedoms.
On the face of it I would say no as the disclosure was limited and additionally one could argue that despite it being medical data it does not necessarily cause any significant detriment to the subject.
However there are any number of additional factors that could change that conclusion. For example:
The nature of the disease might call be embarrassing or call into question the morals of the data subject (eg an STD)
The two John Smith's know each other or at least work in the same place
The recipient has circulated the information more widely
John Smith is a well-known public figure
I know John Smith is a placename here but actually you can argue that common names are more difficult to pinpoint to an individual so the amount of detail in the letter allowing the specific John Smith to be identified might also be a factor
-----Original Message-----
From: This list is for those interested in Data Protection issues [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Phil Bradshaw
Sent: 16 October 2018 09:38
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: [data-protection] Notifiable breach - straw poll
Your HR department discovers that a student John Smith may have contracted an infectious disease whilst on an assignment in Africa.
It writes to John setting out its concerns and asking him to contact the medical service before returning to college in October. The letter is sent to the wrong John Smith. John’s condition is not public knowledge.
Is this personal data breach notifiable to the Information Commissioner?
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