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Hi!

I'm not sure I can answer but I have had to deal with a similar situation
for a London Borough library service that wanted to place contact details
for local societies on their new web site.  In this case the information
usually consisted of name, home address and a telephone number.  In a very
few cases it also included an email address.

Regarding  whether another organisation can use the information for direct
marketing purposes without reference back, justifying this by considering
the data subject to have  waived their rights by allowing their information
to be published on the Web? -

I don't know the legal answer but  I would suggest that whatever the legal
position it will be very difficult in practice to prevent this attitude from
prevailing.  You don't say what details would be placed on the sites but I
seem to recall some 1995 CCTA guidelines that advised against the placing of
personal details on web sites.   I can see why details would be included in
a site but suggest that you anonymise the data as best as possible,
providing only the bare minimum contact details.  Also I suggest that you
ensure the individuals concerned have understood to what they are consenting
i.e. they fully appreciate that placing their details on the Web  makes them
publicly and globally available.


My solution was to provide only a title and club house address where
possible rather than give personal details e.g. instead of Ms A Knight,
...home address etc....  we simply put The Secretary, Bishop's Chess Club
together with the  address of a regular meeting place if available or an
email address if this didn't obviously identify the individual.  Only if
there was no other alternative or the individual agreed did we use a
domestic address or home phone number.  Although it may not have been
completely satisfactory we hoped that this approach would still enable the
club to be contacted by legitimately interested persons but allow an
individual to retain some sort of anonymity!  It also helped a with site
maintenance since we weren't forever changing contact addresses as local
society officials changed following each annual meeting!

Regarding the second question "can the data controller of the internet
database pass any data to another individual/organisation without obtaining
consent from the data subject if the information is available in the "public
domain" anyway i.e. the Internet?"

When the information is originally provided it is for a purpose, which
appears to be 'to enable other interested individuals to make legitimate
contact'.  To do so the information is place in a 'public domain' but this
doesn't in itself remove ethical or legal responsibilities.  To use the
information for a purpose other than that for which it is provided is a
breach of the second principle.

Hope this is useful.  I'm interested in the views/experience of others.

regards,

Kevin Broadfoot
IS Adviser

Business Link London North,  312 High Rd., Tottenham, London N15 4BN
tel 020 8376 6262 fax 020 8376 623