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Personal data breaches

A personal data breach is a breach of security which directly effects the confidentiality, integrity and/or availability of personal data. This includes breaches that are the result of both accidental and deliberate causes and means that a breach is more than just about losing personal data.

Security and data protection breaches reported to Gloucestershire County Council by members of the public or 3rd party agencies are responded to in line with the Information Compliance Complaints Procedure.

Personal data breaches can include:

  • access to information by unauthorised individuals.
  • sending personal data to an incorrect recipient via electronic or physical means.
  • alteration of personal data without permission and/or need; and
  • loss of availability of personal data.

If you believe you or a family member’s personal and/or special category (sensitive) information may have been breached, or you are concerned about something that could lead to an incident in the future, please report your concerns to the council’s Information Security Team as soon as possible by emailing managemyrequests@gloucestershire.gov.uk, quoting Personal Data Concern in the subject line.

Once your email has been reviewed, we will contact you to provide an estimated timescale for the investigation process and if necessary, clarify your concerns before beginning our investigation. We will keep you informed throughout the investigation and will advise you of the outcome.

Where an investigation concerns the actions of an individual staff member or members, Information Security will be unable to provide specific information relating to the actions taken (if any) due to associated Data Protection rights and regulations, but will provide you with a summary of the outcome.

In certain circumstances it may be necessary for Information Security to raise concerns with the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), the UK's independent body set up to uphold information rights. In these instances we will notify you as soon as possible and provide you with the ICO’s reference number and contact details for your reference.

Please visit the council’s privacy notice pages for details on how the council uses personal data.

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