Data Protection is about how you use data that you may come across during your business operations and ensuring that people can feel confident to trust you with their data that you may have. Data isn’t just about personal information and records but can cover wider areas such as CCTV capture
The Information Commissioner’s Office, also known as the ICO, are the independent authority in the UK, set up in 1984 to uphold information rights in the public interest
The ICO describe Data Protection as “Data protection is the fair and proper use of information about people. It’s part of the fundamental right to privacy – but on a more practical level, it’s really about building trust between people and organisations. It’s about treating people fairly and openly, recognising their right to have control over their own identity and their interactions with others, and striking a balance with the wider interests of society”.
United Kingdom General Data Protection Regulation (UK-GDPR) is the current law governing the processing of personal data in the UK and sets out the strict rules that apply in relation to personal data
Under the Data Protection Act 2018 businesses or organisations who process personal information are required to pay a data protection fee unless they are exempt. This is renewed on an annual basis.
Every business will be different in terms of the personal data that they come across during their business operations and what they do with this data, you can find more information about your responsibilities surrounding data protection on ICO website
The ICO have a self-assessment registration tool on their website, by answering some simple questions about your business operations and the data you use, this will help you to establish if you need to register to pay a data protection fee