More Than Lost Laptops ICO Issues Further Monetary Penalties For Data Protection Failures

Following the loss of two laptops containing sensitive personal information, the Information Commissioner's Office ("ICO") has issued Ealing and Hounslow Councils with monetary penalties of £80,000 and £70,000, respectively, for serious breaches of the Data Protection Act 1998 ("the Act").

The two laptops were stolen from the home of an employee of Ealing Council's "out-of-hours" service - a facility which they also provide on behalf of Hounslow Council. The laptops contained the details of approximately 1,700 individuals, with data relating to both Councils.

In breach of Ealing Council's own policy, while both laptops were password-protected, the data stored on both laptops remained unencrypted.  While the ICO acknowledged the lack of any evidence to suggest that the laptops had subsequently been accessed, they noted that such non-compliance nevertheless posed "a significant risk to the clients' privacy", contrary to the Act.