About us
See other news storiesData handling review released
25 June 2008
The final report calls for changes in the way government departments handle personal information.
The review (new window) was conducted by the Prime Minister’s security adviser, Robert Hannigan, after a number of highly publicised security lapses in which personal data was lost by other government departments, including the Child Benefit Agency.
The Home Office is determined to learn from earlier security breaches in government, so we contributed to the review and, along with other departments, we have agreed to implement all of its recommendations.
As a result of this process, your personal data will be safer, and our systems for protecting your information will be stronger.
Key recommendations
The key recommendations in the report include:
- enhancing accountability for secure data
- ensuring that information security stays high on our agenda as a department
- making critical technical actions to protect data
- valuing and protecting data at all stages
Much work already done
The Home Office has already:
- instructed all units across the Home Office that no unencrypted laptops or drives containing personal data were to be taken outside secured office premises
- audited the department’s personal information holdings and the security measures applying to each
- withdrawn virtually all staff 'burn rights' for removable media
- issued a new security policy for the use of write-enabled media
- launched a central encryption bureau for incoming and outgoing personal data
Our rules are strict
No personal information may be sent beyond the secure boundary of government networks without first being encrypted.
Outside agencies sending personal information to the Home Office are also required to encrypt this information.
We already have in place a Hannigan-compliant system for reporting security incidents. Any breaches of security at the Home Office will be taken very seriously and investigated thoroughly to avoid any possibility of recurrence.
Information charter
The Home Office recently published its information charter, detailing its policies on protecting public data.
