Civil rights coalition raises concerns over “collapse in enforcement activity” by ICO

A group of over 70 civil society organizations, academics, and legal practitioners is complaining about the “collapse in enforcement activity” by the UK’s Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO).

In an open letter addressed to Chi Onwurah, the Chair of the Science, Innovation and Technology Committee of the House of Commons, the organizations and experts state that data protection is an essential line of defense against abuse and discrimination in all sectors.

“Data breaches expose individuals to serious danger and are liable to disrupt government and business continuity,” they say.

That’s why they believe that ICO Commissioner John Edwards's reluctance to take data protection enforcement more seriously is worrisome.

According to the civil rights coalition, the average number of reported data breaches has increased 11% since Edwards’s adoption, and the number of data protection complaints has risen by 8%. In addition, the ICO’s latest Annual Report shows a sharp drop in formal investigations, criminal prosecution, and the issuing of enforcement notices, monetary penalties, and reprimands.

Furthermore, in several data breach incidents, including a data breach incident involving 19,000 Afghanis being relocated by the Ministry of Defense, the ICO did too little to protect the personal information of millions of victims, the coalition claims. Instead, the ICO lowered monetary penalties and didn’t pursue any formal actions against the Ministry of Defense.

“The picture that emerges is one where the ICO public sector approach lacks deterrence, and fails to drive the adoption of good data management across government and public bodies,” the open letter says.

The signatories depict the way the ICO operates as “the symptom of deeper structural failures.” Therefore, they call upon the Science, Innovation and Technology Committee to launch an investigation into the Information Commissioner’s Office “to understand why data protection enforcement appears to be a low priority.”

The ICO hasn’t responded to the civil rights group’s fears, complaints, and suggestions.

Unlock more exclusive Cybernews content on YouTube.