Tag: ICO

ICO warns of “real danger” of discrimination in new technologies that monitor the brain

Stuart Mitchell

The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) is warning that newly emerging neurotechnologies risk discriminating against people if those groups are not put at the heart of their development. The regulator predicts that the use of technology to monitor neurodata, the information coming directly from the brain and nervous system, will become widespread over the next decade. Neurotech is already used in the healthcare sector, where there are strict regulations. It can predict, diagnose, and treat complex physical and mental illnesses, transforming a person’s responses to illnesses such as dementia and Parkinson’s…

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ICO launches FOI toolkit topic to help public bodies deal with vexatious requests

Stuart Mitchell

Continuing with its commitment to improving freedom of information (FOI) services, the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) has launched the third topic in its FOI toolkit to enable public authorities to self-assess how they deal with vexatious requests. The FOI Act includes a provision that does not oblige a public authority to comply with a request for information if the request is vexatious. That means whether an information request is likely to cause a disproportionate or unjustified level of disruption, irritation or distress. The appropriate use of this provision protects public…

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ICO Sandbox publishes its exit report following work with ‘Good With’ – a startup aiming to give young adults fairer access to financial products and services

Stuart Mitchell

The ICO’s Regulatory Sandbox aims to support organisations who are creating products and services which utilise personal data in innovative and safe ways. Good With, a fintech and edtech start-up, entered the Sandbox as part of its work to develop mobile applications which will help educate young adults on personal finance. It plans to develop a Financial Virtual Assistant (FVA) app which will combine various personal data sources to produce a ‘financial readiness score’. Good With hopes this readiness score will help to provide the FVA’s users (18-24-year-olds), who might…

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ICO to prioritise Freedom of Information complaints with significant public interest

Stuart Mitchell

The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) has announced a new approach to prioritise complaints made under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) where there is significant public interest. As part of the ICO’s efforts to improve its FOI services, the new prioritisation framework will ensure that complaints where there is significant public interest in the information requested will now be dealt with quicker than previously. For the past year, the ICO has streamlined its processes to better handle the volume and complexity of FOI complaints it receives, so it can do…

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ICO statement following Scottish Government’s consensual data protection audit

Stuart Mitchell

The Scottish Government has committed to implementing a series of recommendations, following an audit from the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO). This will lead to improvements in the way people’s data is handled by the Scottish Government. In 2022, the ICO carried out a consensual data protection audit of various directorates of the Scottish Government. While the ICO observed existing good practice, there are crucial areas the Scottish Government needs to improve on. Areas identified for improvement include: Carrying out a data flow mapping exercise to fully understand how data is…

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