Court Judgment Addresses Use Of CCTV Footage In Disciplinary Proceedings

In Simon McVann v Data Protection Commission [2023] IECC 3 (McVann), the appellant appealed against decisions of the Data Protection Commission (DPC) concerning the processing of his personal data.

The personal data in question, captured via CCTV footage, was deemed by the DPC to have been lawfully processed by Mayo University Hospital (Hospital) and used by the appellant's employer, the Irish Prison Service (IPS) for purposes compatible with the original purposes for collecting such data. The Court of Appeal (CoA) agreed with this finding in the specific circumstances.

Background

The case centred around the use of the CCTV footage in internal disciplinary proceedings concerning the appellant. The footage had been requested by IPS from the Hospital for security purposes to apprehend a prisoner who had escaped after being treated overnight in the Hospital. The footage was later used as evidence to support a separate allegation made against the appellant under