Big Brother Watch

Government moves to reduce red tape around school field trips

In a sensible attempt to reduce the bureaucracy which makes school trips difficult to organise, the Government is attempting to simplify the guidelines, however teaching unions have criticised the move. The Department for Education is publishing new guidance for school staff, reducing the length of the guidelines from a staggering 150 pages to a more manageable 8.

Over recent years the guidelines have expanded again and again due to bureaucracy and a fear of civil litigation. Schools are loath to organise trips due to the complex nature of the paperwork involved and the risk of being sued if an accident occurs. Even the Health and Safety Executive itself is in favour of a change in the guidelines. They hope it will dispel some of the legal ‘myths’ which they are often accused of.

Chris Grayling, Employment minister, said:

“We've got a crazy situation at the moment where, very often, headteachers and teachers think that actually the rules are such that it's not a good idea to plan school trips.”

“There's too much bureaucracy, too many health and safety rules and a risk of prosecution if something goes wrong. There is no reason - and never was - why children should be prevented from going on school trips by over-enthusiastic misinterpretation of rules.”

General Secretary of the teaching union NASUWT, Chris Keates said:

“The decision to scrap over 140 pages of guidance is potentially reckless and could increase litigation against schools and teachers. There is no evidence demonstrating the need for the previous guidance to be abandoned, and no educational reason for doing so. The dilution of guidance for schools is likely to reduce rather than increase the number of educational visits.”

This move to introduce sensible changes and allow children to go on more school trips should be applauded rather than criticised. Only two legal cases have been brought against schools for a breach of health and safety law on a school trip in the last five years, so any measure which removes time-wasting bureaucracy and allows teachers to spend more time with their pupils should be commended.

Links of the day Friday 1st July

Please note these are articles and opinions we found interesting, however they do not necessarily represent the views of Big Brother Watch

Background checking in the palm of the hand

Google faces 'wire tapping' case over Street View

Facebook crashes advertising industry party

Government refuses to keep DNA of innocent people

Does Johann Hari actually meet his interviewees?

Phishers switch focus to targeted attacks, warns Cisco

Weekly newsletter

WPP and an Internet Bill Of Rights
       - call on your MP to sign Robert Halfon MP's EDM

Big Brother Watch supporter Robert Halfon MP has this week tabled an Early Day Motion - a parliamentary procedure through which MPs can draw attention to a particular issue - regarding the WPP Group and their boast of having built up a database containing information on "almost 100%" of the public.  For more information, click here.

The Early Day Motion reads as follows:

 "That this House is deeply concerned that privacy is gradually being eroded by private companies using the internet to obtain personal data and selling it for commercial gain; notes that the latest problem is with WPP Group plc, the advertising firm, which claims to have built up individual profiles for half a billion internet users across the world, including allegedly almost 100 per cent. of British people; further notes that secret monitoring of internet users is already a huge issue, with data scraping and cookies monitoring people without their consent; believes an internet bill of rights is needed to guard against the growing infringement of civil liberties that are not covered by existing legislation; and further believes that the Information Commissioner lacks the powers necessary to protect personal data and has done precious little to protect our privacy in recent tests such as the Google Street View project."

While Early Day Motions carry no legislative weight, we would urge you to contact your Member of Parliament asking them to sign this declaration in order to heighten awareness of this issue.

You can contact your MP directly by visiting www.writetothem.com.

Media Highlights

Daniel Hamilton on the Giles Dilnot Show on BBC Radio 5 Live discussing the legality of swearing in public places

Daniel Hamilton on BBC Radio Tees discussing the introduction of the new national Police database.

Telegraph - Hand over your NI number and date of birth if you want to keep the right to vote, Government says

Daniel Hamilton, a director of Big Brother Watch, said: “We have managed to have elections in this country without surrendering this sort of information for hundreds of years.

“Creating a database of National Insurance numbers has obvious risks for our privacy and identity security.

"Electoral fraud is a minor problems in the UK, and is driven mostly by postal voting. If you have to hand over this kind of information to vote some people might say 'forget it then'.”  

Daily Express - Now smoking will be banned in the streets

But Daniel Hamilton, director of Big Brother Watch, said: “It looks like the nanny state is manifesting in Milton Keynes.

“For a town council to be doing this is appalling, they are there to deal with potholes and parks.”

Press Association - NHS record 'culture change' urged

Daniel Hamilton, director of campaign group Big Brother Watch, added:

"The NHS needs to drastically tighten up its data security procedures and reduce the number of people with access to medical records to prevent the high rate of data loss currently recorded.

"The Government needs urgently to address the dire state of security around our medical records before it fully rolls out the Summary Care Record, granting access to hundreds of thousands of additional NHS staff across England."

Daily Mail - 'Give the public a rest': Female convict with 'truly appalling record' jailed for 229th offence

Daniel Hamilton of Big Brother Watch said: 'While suspects who have not been convicted of a crime must have their identities protected, this woman waived her right to anonymity when she chose to carry out almost 230 criminal offences.

'Communities have a right to know the identities of those terrorising them.  The Police are wrong to hide behind this veil of anonymity.'

Computing Magazine - Home Office will not back down on DNA database

The exchanges followed a warning from Big Brother Watch over the launch of a new Police National Database linking intelligence and criminal records information.

BBW director Daniel Hamilton claimed it would hold information on up to 15 million people, six million of whom had no convictions, and warned it contained information about victims, insisting: "Ordinary members of the public should not have their personal details logged in this way… The risk of this data falling into the hands of criminals is too horrifying to comprehend."

Kent and Sussex Courier - Council's all set for data sell-off; Privacy fears sparked by public details cash-in plan     [not available online]

Daniel Hamilton, director of privacy campaign group Big Brother Watch, said: "I think it is scandalous they are seeking to generate money from it and refusing to come clean about what information they have.

"This information belongs to the residents of Tunbridge Wells, not the council seeking to generate income. They should tell them exactly what they are selling and make a solid case for it."

Blogs of the Week 

Use of RIPA to spy on individuals has increased in the last year

Under the previous government, legislation designed to combat terrorism and serious crime was utilised by local councils to spy on residents for trivial matters such as school catchment areas and putting rubbish bins out too early. In their coalition agreement, the two parties in power promised to roll back the unnecessary, intrusive use of these powers, but unfortunately the reality has been very different.

British Medical Association calls for yet more regulations on smoking, alcohol and food

The British Medical Association has called for even more draconian measures to restrict the freedoms of the general populace. At their annual conference, the union suggested a wide range of additional ways to stop people from living their lives how they wish to.

Firstly, they recommended the previously floated idea of a ban on smoking in cars. The justification for this is a piece of dubious research claiming toxicity from smoking in cars is 27 times higher than it is in a home. Research on smoking from self interested groups such as ASH has often been disingenuous, however it is a misleading statistic in any case as houses are far larger and more open than the inside of a car. People should have the freedom to smoke in their own vehicle as long as cigarettes are legal.

No evidence of benefits of indefinite retention of DNA from innocent people

Chris Pounder has written an article debunking the claims of the Labour Party that the DNA profiles of innocent people who have never been convicted of an offence should be held indefinitely. Alan Johnson, then Home Secretary, used case studies as examples for why this retention was necessary, however in all three the retention of DNA would not have helped or harmed the investigations

95 year old woman forced to remove wet nappy at airport for security pat down

Big Brother Watch has long campaigned against the overly intrusive methods used by airport security staff.  There are numerous examples of such intrusions, from the forced use of body scanners in British and American airports to the intimidating pat-downs many young children have been forced to endure.

We have yet, however, to hear of a case as shocking as that of a wheelchair-bound 95 year old woman who was forced to remove her wet adult nappy in order to allow US Transportation Security Administration (TSA) inspectors to pat her down before a flight.

Local authorities to be forced to reveal information about speed cameras

In a victory for transparency local authorities in Britain will be forced to reveal figures about speed cameras in their areas. The figures will show how many fines each camera has given out along with the total amount of revenue accumulated from fines. By July 20^th, they must release information on the number of accidents and casualties at camera sites, both before and after the installation of CCTV

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ICO calls for better data protection in NHS after numerous incidents

After the recent loss of a laptop from the NHA North Central London Trust containing around 8.3 million patient records, the Information Commissioner Christopher Graham has finally moved to denounce the endemic data loss problems common in the National Health Service. There have been numerous examples of data loss in recent months, leading to five more health organisations agreeing to undertakings to improve security.

Information Commissioner Christopher Graham said:

“The health service holds some of the most sensitive personal information of any sector in the UK. Millions of records are constantly being accessed and we appreciate that there will be occasions where human error occurs. But recent incidents such as the loss of laptops at NHS North Central London – which we are currently investigating – suggest that the security of data remains a systemic problem.”

“The policies and procedures may already be in place but the fact is that they are not being followed on the ground. Health workers wouldn't dream of discussing patient information openly with friends and yet they continue to put information on unencrypted memory sticks or fax it to the wrong number.”

But privacy groups don’t believe the ICO have gone far enough to curtail the problems. Daniel Hamilton, director of campaign group Big Brother Watch, added:

“The NHS needs to drastically tighten up its data security procedures and reduce the number of people with access to medical records to prevent the high rate of data loss currently recorded.”

“The Government needs urgently to address the dire state of security around our medical records before it fully rolls out the Summary Care Record, granting access to hundreds of thousands of additional NHS staff across England.”

Despite their tougher than usual approach to dealing with public bodies, the ICO remain useless at enforcing the Data Protection Act. The threat of a £500,000 fine may coerce private companies to adjust their behaviour and improve performance, but in the public sector there is no fiscal responsibility. To circumvent this problem, direct responsibility for any data loss must fall on individuals who are personally involved. This would create an impetus to improve data protection and a reason not to allow standards to slip. Patients in the NHS deserve to know that their private information is safe from hackers and criminals who would use it for nefarious reasons.

Use of RIPA to spy on individuals has increased in the last year

Under the previous government, legislation designed to combat terrorism and serious crime was utilised by local councils to spy on residents for trivial matters such as school catchment areas and putting rubbish bins out too early. In their coalition agreement, the two parties in power promised to roll back the unnecessary, intrusive use of these powers, but unfortunately the reality has been very different.

Last year, public bodies made 552,550 requests under the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act (RIPA) to request access to confidential communications data. This is a 5% increase from 2009 and a massive 10% increase from the 504,073 requests in 2008. Although the majority are from police and security services, 1,809 were made by local authorities, an increase from 1,756 requests last year.

As well as the rise in the use of the RIPA, the results revealed there were over 1,700 errors amongst the requests. This can lead to the monitoring of incorrect numbers or email addresses, affecting innocent people who are not connected to any investigation.

Conservative MP Dominic Raab, who is a staunch supporter of civil liberties, said:

“This disturbing data demonstrates the importance of the coalition's Freedom Bill – to reverse the legacy of Labour's surveillance society.”

Christopher Graham, the Information Commissioner, has already revealed that surveillance technology is advancing at such a rapid rate that regulators are finding it almost impossible to deal with the changes. He claimed that recent changes had seen snooping techniques “intensify and expand” to the point where watchdogs do not fully understand the methods utilised under the act.

The Coalition proposal to require all local council use of the RIPA to be sanctioned by a magistrate is currently going through Parliament, but the increasing use of the powers highlights the necessity to enforce tight regulation on these intrusive measures which should only ever have been used to combat terrorism and serious crime as they were intended.

WPP and an Internet Bill Of Rights - call on your MP to sign Robert Halfon MP's EDM

Big Brother Watch supporter Robert Halfon MP has tabled an Early Day Motion - a parliamentary procedure by which MPs can draw attention to a particular issue - regarding the WPP Group and their boasts of having built up a database containing information on "almost 100%" of the public.  For more information, click here.

The Early Day Motion reads as follows:

"That this House is deeply concerned that privacy is gradually being eroded by private companies using the internet to obtain personal data and selling it for commercial gain; notes that the latest problem is with WPP Group plc, the advertising firm, which claims to have built up individual profiles for half a billion internet users across the world, including allegedly almost 100 per cent. of British people; further notes that secret monitoring of internet users is already a huge issue, with data scraping and cookies monitoring people without their consent; believes an internet bill of rights is needed to guard against the growing infringement of civil liberties that are not covered by existing legislation; and further believes that the Information Commissioner lacks the powers necessary to protect personal data and has done precious little to protect our privacy in recent tests such as the Google Street View project."

While Early Day Motions carry no legislative weight, we would urge you to contact your Member of Parliament asking them to sign this motion in order to heighten awareness of this issue.

You can contact your MP directly by visiting www.writetothem.com.

Councillor in Milton Keynes town tries to ban smoking

As if the recommendations from the BMA weren’t enough, a councillor in Stony Stratford with delusions of grandeur has proposed a bylaw to ban smoking in any public place in the Milton Keynes Borough. Councillor Pail Bartlett will attempt to get the plan approved by the town council, leading to on-the-spot fines for anyone found to be smoking in the town. Mr. Bartlett said:

“Stony Stratford is a historic town which is blighted by cigarette butts. The plan that I am trying to put forward is for smoking to be banned in public in the High Street, surrounding streets, and preferably elsewhere as well. Why should people be able to smoke in my face and spoil the environment?”

Apparently his inspiration is the recent ban on smoking in New York City’s parks and beaches. How he manages to draw parallel comparisons between an English town with a population of 12,000 and the biggest city in the United States with more than 8 million inhabitants is a mystery. He may also want to analyse the success of that ban considering only one fine has been issued during the first month of the rule, despite the ban covering 1,700 parks and 14 miles of coastline.

The most interesting element of this case is the legal situation. If it was possible to outlaw smoking in a localised area such as a town, why has it not been tried before? The implementation alone would be a logistical nightmare. Where would the outer points of the ban be?

Even if the council were able to find someway to create this bylaw and enforce it, cigarette sales are bound to drop in the area, hurting local shops and businesses. It could lead to a situation where people can smoke on one side of a road but not on the other. Residents of the area who smoke will be forced to either smoke at home or travel outside of the town. Supposedly it would be enforced by PCSOs, traffic wardens and residents themselves.

But the key issue must remain the personal freedom of residents and visitors to Stony Stratford. Ciggarettes are a legal product and smokers are already subject to numerous regulations and excessive taxation. Town-by-town bans spreading around the country would not be allowed by the government. If there was public and political support for it then it would be legislated for centrally, not by local councillors.

Big Brother Watch will be keeping an eye on this case as it develops, as it may have wide-reaching consequences for the towns and cities in Britain.

FCC Commissioner McDowell's speech against Internet regulation

Federal Communications Commissioner Robert McDowell gave a speech on Monday at a broadband conference in Stockholm entitled 'Technology and the Sovereignty of the Individual'. The message of the speech is clear; the Internet should not be regulated by government.

In his speech he says,

"To propel freedom’s momentum, policy makers should remember that, since their inception, the Internet and mobile connectivity have migrated further away from government control. As the result of longstanding international consensus, the Internet itself has become the greatest deregulatory success story of all time. To continue to promote freedom and prosperity, regulators should continue to rely on the “bottom up” nongovernmental Internet governance bodies that have a perfect record of keeping the ’Net working and open. We must heed the advice of leaders like Neelie Kroes, who has consistently called on regulators to “avoid over-hasty regulatory intervention,” and steer clear of “unnecessary measures which may hinder new efficient business models from emerging.” I couldn’t agree more. Changing course now could not only trigger an avalanche of international regulation, but it could halt the progress of freedom’s march as well.

With these pragmatic principles in mind, freedom-loving governments everywhere should resist the temptation to regulate in the absence of pervasive market failure. Needless government intrusion into the Internet’s affairs provides nefarious authoritarian regimes with the political cover they desire to justify their interference with the ’Net. To prevent an escalation of international regulation, we should encourage the kind of positive and constructive chaos that only unfettered competition can produce. We should adopt spectrum policies that promote flexible uses, spectrum allocation through fair auction processes and, when appropriate, unlicensed use of the airwaves to spur innovation and adoption. Fueling freedom in this way will turn the world upside down for the better."

Read the full speech defense of Internet freedom here.

by Dominique Lazanski - Hat Tip: AT

 

 

British Medical Association calls for yet more regulations on smoking, alcohol and food

The British Medical Association has called for even more draconian measures to restrict the freedoms of the general populace. At their annual conference, the union suggested a wide range of additional ways to stop people from living their lives how they wish to.

Firstly, they recommended the previously floated idea of a ban on smoking in cars. The justification for this is a piece of dubious research claiming toxicity from smoking in cars is 27 times higher than it is in a home. Research on smoking from self interested groups such as ASH has often been disingenuous, however it is a misleading statistic in any case as houses are far larger and more open than the inside of a car. People should have the freedom to smoke in their own vehicle as long as cigarettes are legal.

Secondly, the BMA suggested a combination of measures on the subject of alcohol, including a total ban on advertising, curtailing licensing hours and introducing a minimum price for each alcoholic unit. Considering the perilous state of the nation’s finances, banning alcohol advertising which contributes over £200 million per year to the British economy is absurd. Minimum pricing is a regressive policy which unfairly targets all drinkers, especially those on lower incomes, while doing nothing to stop hardened alcoholics for whom price has no effect on demand.

There was also the vague suggestion of outlawing the ‘unacceptable’ use of trans-fats in food. This seems unenforceable considering many trans-fats are naturally occurring in food. Besides this, why should people who generally eat healthily be restricted from eating certain foods simply because the BMA is concerned about others who consistently eat the wrong foods?

Luckily, not all in attendance agreed with these excessive methods. One medical student, Charlie Bell said:

“We are the BMA not the BNA - the British Nannying Association.”

The Department of Health has released the following response:

“This government believes that if we are to find new ways of supporting people to change their behaviour we need to work in a broad partnership with public health, voluntary and commercial organisations.”

“Government alone cannot improve public health. Everyone has a role to play in improving the public's health.”

The BMA will never stop trying to enforce more regulations. Of course it is in their interest, and society in generals, for people to be healthier and live longer. However, this should not be at the expense of losing our freedom to enjoy perfectly legal products.

Why do public bodies think it's acceptable to flout Freedom of Information laws?

Big Brother Watch is currently in the process of conducting an investigation, a report on which will be released in the coming weeks, into an aspect of Police policy. 

In order to do this, we have submitted Freedom of Information requests to Police forces across the country.

Statutorily, public service bodies are obliged to respond to Freedom of Information requests within a mandatory period of twenty working days.  An overwhelming majority of Police forces have responded to our request in time, with the information we requested enclosed.

Sadly, Northamptonshire Police do not appear to think that Freedom of Information laws apply to them.  This morning - a day after the statutory deadline for responses passed - we received this e-mail:

RE: FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT 2000 - REQUEST FOR INFORMATION 
Our Ref: 002132/11
 
With reference to your e-mail received 01/06/2011 requesting information:
 
This is to inform you that Northamptonshire Police will not be able to complete the response to your request by the date originally indicated. However, I can advise you that the amended date for a response is 28/7/11, and that every effort will be made to ensure that you receive an appropriate response as soon as possible and in any case within this new timescale.
 
On behalf of Northamptonshire Police, I do apologies [sic] for any inconvenience that may be caused by this delay and if you wish to discuss this any further then please contact the undersigned.
 
Northamptonshire Police provides a review and appeals procedure within the terms of the Freedom of Information Act 2000. If you decide to make an appeal and, having followed the full process you are still dissatisfied, you will then have the right to direct your comments to the Information Commissioner who will give due consideration to the matter. See Appendix 'a' attached.

Yours sincerely
Terri Collis

Information Unit
Northamptonshire Police
Data Protection/Freedom of Information
Telephone 03000 111 222 x2339   Facsimile 01604 888304
Email terri.collis@northants.pnn.police.uk

Not only have Northamptonshire Police failed to respond in a timely manner to a Freedom of Information request the majority of other forces have responded to, they also appear to believe it's acceptable to deliver this information a month late.

While this is clearly unacceptable, Northamptonshire Police's intransigence is far from being an isolated case.  We'd refer them to the Information Commissioner if we had even a modicum of confidence in his office to enforce penalties against those failing to comply with FOI regulations.

Why do so many public bodies believe it's acceptable to openly flout Freedom of Information laws?

Links of the day Wednesday 29th June

Please note these are articles and opinions we found interesting, however they do not necessarily represent the views of Big Brother Watch

Clarification on the Police National Database

Groupon India publishes 300,000 user passwords

‘Peeping Tom’ spared jail for making DVD of women on toilet

Rethink call on CCTV rules shake-up

Council rakes in £20k from parking camera

CCTV rumours quashed

ICO website’s new cookie system rejected by 90% of web users

Back in May this year, the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) decided to allow UK websites an additional year to comply with the European Union’s cookie directive. Out of all 27 member states, only Estonia and Denmark have fully implemented the ruling.

After the additional year is over, there is the threat of a fine up to £500,000 from the ICO. Interestingly enough, in an effort to get the ball rolling, the ICO decided to follow the ruling immediately. The following message appears when you first visit the website:

“The ICO would like to use cookies to store information on your computer, to improve our website. One of the cookies we use is essential for parts of the site to operate and has already been set. You may delete and block all cookies from this site, but parts of the site will not work. To find out more about the cookies we use and how to delete them, see our privacy notice.”

After an FOI request from a researcher called Vicky Brock, she discovered that 90% of internet users rejected the cookie, removing the ability of the website to monitor visitors. Considering this is from the website of an organisation devoted to protecting your information, this is a truly shocking statistic.

It is possible that with a large PR campaign It will be possible to educate people about cookies, improving their take-up, but if the results are replicated next year when the ruling is enforced, internet advertising may be severely damaged overnight.

Database aims to track everyone in the UK

At Big Brother Watch, we have long warned about the insidious growth of the database state; a trend which threatens privacy and opens up millions of people to the potential of their data being lost or stolen.

In the long run, we hope that our highlighting of concerns surrounding this topic will lead to more private and public sector operations adopting "privacy by design" into their interactions with members of the public so that people are better able to keep track of what information is held on them and why.

Sadly this belief in privacy is not held by the British advertising firm WPP who have issued a press statement claiming "to have built the world's largest database of individuals' internet behaviour".  This database, the firm claims, will be able to track "almost 100 per cent of the UK population".

Big Brother Watch will be keeping an eye on this database in the coming months...

You can view the whole story here.

Links of the day Tuesday 28th June 2011

Please note these are articles and opinions we found interesting, however they do not necessarily represent the views of Big Brother Watch

Is this the end of anonymity?

Advertisers 'track almost 100 per cent' of web users

Home Office will not back down on DNA database

Freedoms Bill: Gov may U-turn on personal data and DNA retention

Accused autistic hacker Ryan Cleary freed on bail

Ban these referral fees which are costing millions of people thousands of pounds on inflated insurance premiums: An article by Frank Manning

Big Brother Watch has previously brought up the topic of insurance companies selling on referral data to no-win no-fee claim firms, which has now received widespread attention after being picked up by the media following an interview on the Today programme by Jack Straw. I personally received a text message a few weeks ago inviting me to claim “up to £3,450” after my “recent accident”.

This was news to me, considering I hadn’t been in an accident and my car was parked on the driveway undamaged. The logic of referring the contact details of people who have been in a crash makes sense despite it being morally destitute, although how they intended on securing me a payout without so much as a bump occurring seems very peculiar.

The system is fiendishly simple yet ludicrously expensive, creating a vicious circle which is making insurance ever more expensive. After a collision or a bump, a motorist must contact their insurer to inform them of the incident and detail any damage to the vehicle.

The insurer then passes on the contact details of the claimant, irrespective of whether any injury has occurred, to a no win, no fee firm, in return for a ‘referral fee’. This fee can be anything from £200 to £1,000 per case, giving a huge incentive for companies to pass on the information. Jack Straw has called for the banning of these fees to halt the rapid rise in premiums.

This system has led to spiralling insurance costs for everyone in the country. The multitude of comparison sites, deals and discounts only serve to confuse customers and disguise the rising cost of insurance. The statistics are truly shocking. The number of claims companies has doubled to 3,400 over the course of just two years, while the total cost of personal injury claims has doubled to £14 billion in ten years. This is at a time when cars are the safest they’ve ever been, vehicle crime has dropped and there are around 30% less accidents than in the late 1990s. Yet premiums still rocketed by 40% from 2009 to 2010.

Apart from the scandal of artificially high premiums supported by these dodgy practices, the passing on of personal contact details without your express permission needs to stop. We have received numerous calls from concerned people who have been bombarded with unsolicited calls and text messages at all hours of the day and night. This is a gross intrusion on privacy, especially considering it is purely for the financial gain of the claims firms, who have no real interest or consideration for the wellbeing of those in accidents.

When questioned on whether he thought it was morally acceptable behaviour, Nick Starling of the Association of British Insurers attempted to excuse it by claiming a variety of groups are doing it including the police, breakdown firms and garages as well as insurers. Basically, “We’re all at it”, despite the fact that whiplash cases cost insurance companies a shocking £2 billion.

Clearly the majority of this is suspicious, as the total cost of whiplash treatment to the NHS is £8 million, while it is notoriously difficult to diagnose. It seems odd that the insurance companies, ostensibly losing money as a result of these claims, have not campaigned and lobbied harder for the referral fees to be banned.

Law Society president Linda Lee said:

"Referral fees hinder access to justice, contribute to rising costs in the justice system, and go against the interests of the consumer. We have always argued for a total ban on referral fees. Jack Straw believes they should be banned, Lord Justice Jackson in his recent report on costs believes they should be banned, and now even the insurance industry agrees they should be banned. The government needs to wake up and take immediate action."

This morning Justive minister Jonathan Djanogly criticised the payment of referral fees, but refused to guarantee the government would ban them. It is possible that the police use them to top up their finances, creating a disincentive to banning them. These forms of behaviour from insurers as well as the police need to stop; the government should reconsider banning referral fees outright.

 UPDATE: Axa have announced this afternoon they will no longer accept referral fees in personal injury claims. Hopefully they will be the first of many.

 

Frank Manning tweets at @BillyManning

No evidence of benefits of indefinite retention of DNA from innocent people

Chris Pounder has written an article debunking the claims of the Labour Party that the DNA profiles of innocent people who have never been convicted of an offence should be held indefinitely. Alan Johnson, then Home Secretary, used case studies as examples for why this retention was necessary, however in all three the retention of DNA would not have helped or harmed the investigations.

There is a real risk that after similar U-turns on NHS reform and prison sentencing, the Government may backtrack on the very important step of deleting the DNA profiles of these people, in an effort to improve civil liberties in Britain and roll back the intrusions of the state as part of the Freedom Bill.

You can read the whole article by clicking here.

95 year old woman forced to remove wet nappy at airport for security pat down

Big Brother Watch has long campaigned against the overly intrusive methods used by airport security staff.  There are numerous examples of such intrusions, from the forced use of body scanners in British and American airports to the intimidating pat-downs many young children have been forced to endure.

We have yet, however, to hear of a case as shocking as that of a wheelchair-bound 95 year old woman who was forced to remove her wet adult nappy in order to allow US Transportation Security Administration (TSA) inspectors to pat her down before a flight.

The lady, who is suffering from advanced leukaemia was boarding a flight from Florida's Northwest Regional Airport back to her home-town of Detroit where she wishes to be buried.

The TSA has been quick to respond to criticisms of their actions, saying that their staff were "following procedures" and that "every person and item must be screened before entering the secure boarding area".

Has the TSA got no humanity?  How can it be ever be considered appropriate or proportionate to strip-search a leukaemia-stricken 95 year old lady returning home to die?

This story, more than any other Big Brother Watch has ever encountered, demonstrates the need for urgent reform of the airport security procedures in order to achieve a more appropriate balance between guaranteeing passenger safety and personal privacy.

Local authorities to be forced to reveal information about speed cameras

In a victory for transparency local authorities in Britain will be forced to reveal figures about speed cameras in their areas. The figures will show how many fines each camera has given out along with the total amount of revenue accumulated from fines. By July 20^th, they must release information on the number of accidents and casualties at camera sites, both before and after the installation of CCTV.

There are over 6,000 speed cameras in Britain, raising a staggering £100,000,000 per year in fines. It is hoped the release of this information will put pressure on local authorities to dismantle ineffective cameras, or those that do not improve safety in the local area.

Road safety minister Mike Penning said:

“We want to stop motorists being used as cash cows. For too long information about speed cameras has been hidden in the shadows. This data will end that by clearly showing whether a camera is saving lives or just making money.”

We expect this information will contain some very shocking figures which will indicate a habit of installing speed cameras in areas where they will make the most money in fines. Approximately 28,000 accidents have occurred since 2001 due to speed cameras causing motorists to drive erratically, brake suddenly or take their eyes off the road.  

Links of the day Friday 24th June 2011

Please note these are articles and opinions we found interesting, however they do not necessarily represent the views of Big Brother Watch

A sinister cyber-surveillance scheme exposed

Frank Manning: Should Ed Miliband be using the terminally ill and victims of serious crimes to score political points at PMQs?

Don't let society scapegoat smokers

Accused SOCA attacker reportedly 'keen' to help cops

Travelodge admits hack

NATO site hacked

Weekly newsleter

Welcome to the Big Brother Watch newsletter!

This week formal launch of the new Police National Database, a system which will link together intelligence and criminal records information held by Police forces across the United Kingdom.

This new database will hold information on up to fifteen million people across the United Kingdom – almost a quarter of the UK’s population.

Up to six million of these people will be people who have never been convicted of carrying out any offence.  The database will also contain information about people who have been subjected to violent physical and sexual attacks.

While it makes sense for Police forces to share information about suspects and convicted criminals, ordinary members of the public should not have their personal details logged in this way.

At Big Brother Watch, we are calling for the to should come forward and admit they’ve made a mistake.  Nobody has a problem with a database of criminals – but we should never build a database of innocent people and crime victims.

Click here to see Big Brother Watch Director Daniel Hamilton discussing the database on the BBC One Show.

Media Highlights

Daniel Hamilton on the BBC1 One Show discussing the new Police national database.

Daniel Hamilton on ITV News discussing the potential hacking of the 2011 Census data.

Daniel Hamilton on the Iain Dale Show on LBC discussing a proposed ban on smoking on private vehicles.

BBC News - Police database will share data on 15 million people 

Privacy campaign group Big Brother Watch said it was concerned that details of members of the public could be logged on the database.

Spokesman Daniel Hamilton said: "Nobody has a problem with a database of criminals but we should never build a database of innocent people and crime victims.

"The risk of this data falling into the hands of criminals is too horrifying to comprehend." 

The Telegraph - Lulzsec census hack reports 'concerning' 

Big Brother Watch's Daniel Hamilton says it would be worrying if rumours that Britain's Census 2011 information had been stolen turned out to be true.

The Independent - Warnings over launch of national crime database

"The risk of this data falling into the hands of criminals is too horrifying to comprehend," said Daniel Hamilton, director of Big Brother Watch. "But if they were able to take the Soca website offline, how are we to have any particular confidence that this database won't fall into the wrong hands?"

Daily Express - Help! The Police have broken in

Daniel Hamilton, of the Big Brother Watch campaign group, said: “This case is symptomatic of the rapid growth of the nanny state. For police officers to be entering people’s homes without invitation is at best hugely ­invasive and, at worse, legally dubious. Trespassing on private property, regardless of any good intention you may have, is a crime.

Home owners should be responsible for ensuring the security of their property, not busy-body police officers.”

Sky News - Hackers Claim They Stole 2011 Census Data

Daniel Hamilton, director of the civil liberties and privacy campaign group Big Brother Watch, said it was "profoundly concerning" if the group had accessed the 2011 Census.

"This comes, however, as no surprise to Big Brother Watch who have for months been warning the government about the risks of this information falling into the wrong hands," he said.

"The personal information of millions of members of the public may now be at risk.

"If these rumours are proved to be correct, it will demonstrate that each and every one of the promises made by the Office of the National Statistics about the safety and security of their databases were entirely bogus."

Daily Mail - 'Big Brother' creeps into nursery as school installs cameras so parents can watch children on their mobile phones

Daniel Hamilton, of privacy campaign group Big Brother Watch, said it was 'sad' the nursery had installed the equipment.

'With each person in the UK being caught on CCTV an average of 300 times a day, it now appears that even young children can't escape the surveillance state,' he said.

'Of course parents want their children to be safe, but monitoring their every movement goes a step too far.'

 

Blogs of the Week

Welsh Assembly Member suggests fingerprinting every single schoolchild in Wales

The sage of the school playground, Welsh Assembly Member Joyce Watson, has decided the process of getting lunch at schools in Wales is far too simple and it therefore requires fingerprint technology in every school canteen around the country. Her justification stems from the potential for embarrassment for children from poorer backgrounds in Welsh schools.

MPs move to ban smoking in private vehicles

Today saw yet another assault on the rights of smokers on the floor of the House of Commons.

Alex Cunningham, who is apparently the Member of Parliament for Stockton North, today moved the 'Smoking in Private Vehicles Bill' - a move to ban adults from smoking in their cars when children are present.

Man arrested after claims of Census data theft appear on the internet

After a hacking group claimed earlier today that they have stolen the date from the 2011 Census, a 19-year-old believed to be a member of the group has been arrested in Essex. He has been named as Ryan Clearly and is currently in custody on suspicion of Computer Misuse Act and Fraud Act offences.

Canadian privacy commissioner issues warning about smart phone and WiFi data collection

The Canadian Information Commissioner Ann Cavoukian has this week issues a warning to consumers about the risks associated with personal smart phones and other devices automatically collecting data on the user's location.

In a report published by her office, Cavoukian argues that privacy should be designed into these systems in order to avoid mobile operators and third parties building up vast logs of information about an individual's personal movemnents without their prior consent.  At present, the majority of people are unaware of the privacy implications of much of the technology they carry around in their pocket.

European Parliament Civil Liberties Committee release report on data protection

A report by the European Parliament’s Civil Liberties Committee has called for businesses in the E.U. to make it more straightforward for customers to access and delete any data stored about them.

The report, released on Wednesday by chairman Juan Fernando López Aguilar, suggested that companies should consider the appointment of specific data protection officers to facilitate this.

Ways to help Big Brother Watch

• Donate to the campaign
• Keep us posted on any stories you see that we might be interested in
• Forward this newsletter to a friend and encourage them to sign up to the mailing list
• Join our Facebook group
• Subscribe to our YouTube channel
• Follow our Twitter feed

Welcome to the Big Brother Watch newsletter!

 This week formal launch of the new Police National Database, a system which will link together intelligence and criminal records information held by Police forces across the United Kingdom.

This new database will hold information on up to fifteen million people across the United Kingdom – almost a quarter of the UK’s population.

Up to six million of these people will be people who have never been convicted of carrying out any offence.  The database will also contain information about people who have been subjected to violent physical and sexual attacks.

While it makes sense for Police forces to share information about suspects and convicted criminals, ordinary members of the public should not have their personal details logged in this way.

At Big Brother Watch, we are calling for the to should come forward and admit they’ve made a mistake.  Nobody has a problem with a database of criminals – but we should never build a database of innocent people and crime victims.

Click here to see Big Brother Watch Director Daniel Hamilton discussing the database on the BBC One Show.

Media Highlights

Daniel Hamilton on the BBC1 One Show discussing the new Police national database.

Daniel Hamilton on ITV News discussing the potential hacking of the 2011 Census data.

Daniel Hamilton on the Iain Dale Show on LBC discussing a proposed ban on smoking on private vehicles.

BBC News - Police database will share data on 15 million people 

Privacy campaign group Big Brother Watch said it was concerned that details of members of the public could be logged on the database.

Spokesman Daniel Hamilton said: "Nobody has a problem with a database of criminals but we should never build a database of innocent people and crime victims.

"The risk of this data falling into the hands of criminals is too horrifying to comprehend." 

The Telegraph - Lulzsec census hack reports 'concerning' 

Big Brother Watch's Daniel Hamilton says it would be worrying if rumours that Britain's Census 2011 information had been stolen turned out to be true.

The Independent - Warnings over launch of national crime database

"The risk of this data falling into the hands of criminals is too horrifying to comprehend," said Daniel Hamilton, director of Big Brother Watch. "But if they were able to take the Soca website offline, how are we to have any particular confidence that this database won't fall into the wrong hands?"

Daily Express - Help! The Police have broken in

Daniel Hamilton, of the Big Brother Watch campaign group, said: “This case is symptomatic of the rapid growth of the nanny state. For police officers to be entering people’s homes without invitation is at best hugely ­invasive and, at worse, legally dubious. Trespassing on private property, regardless of any good intention you may have, is a crime.

Home owners should be responsible for ensuring the security of their property, not busy-body police officers.”

Sky News - Hackers Claim They Stole 2011 Census Data

Daniel Hamilton, director of the civil liberties and privacy campaign group Big Brother Watch, said it was "profoundly concerning" if the group had accessed the 2011 Census.

"This comes, however, as no surprise to Big Brother Watch who have for months been warning the government about the risks of this information falling into the wrong hands," he said.

"The personal information of millions of members of the public may now be at risk.

"If these rumours are proved to be correct, it will demonstrate that each and every one of the promises made by the Office of the National Statistics about the safety and security of their databases were entirely bogus."

Daily Mail - 'Big Brother' creeps into nursery as school installs cameras so parents can watch children on their mobile phones

Daniel Hamilton, of privacy campaign group Big Brother Watch, said it was 'sad' the nursery had installed the equipment.

'With each person in the UK being caught on CCTV an average of 300 times a day, it now appears that even young children can't escape the surveillance state,' he said.

'Of course parents want their children to be safe, but monitoring their every movement goes a step too far.'

 

Blogs of the Week

Welsh Assembly Member suggests fingerprinting every single schoolchild in Wales

The sage of the school playground, Welsh Assembly Member Joyce Watson, has decided the process of getting lunch at schools in Wales is far too simple and it therefore requires fingerprint technology in every school canteen around the country. Her justification stems from the potential for embarrassment for children from poorer backgrounds in Welsh schools.

MPs move to ban smoking in private vehicles

Today saw yet another assault on the rights of smokers on the floor of the House of Commons.

Alex Cunningham, who is apparently the Member of Parliament for Stockton North, today moved the 'Smoking in Private Vehicles Bill' - a move to ban adults from smoking in their cars when children are present.

Man arrested after claims of Census data theft appear on the internet

After a hacking group claimed earlier today that they have stolen the date from the 2011 Census, a 19-year-old believed to be a member of the group has been arrested in Essex. He has been named as Ryan Clearly and is currently in custody on suspicion of Computer Misuse Act and Fraud Act offences.

Canadian privacy commissioner issues warning about smart phone and WiFi data collection

The Canadian Information Commissioner Ann Cavoukian has this week issues a warning to consumers about the risks associated with personal smart phones and other devices automatically collecting data on the user's location.

In a report published by her office, Cavoukian argues that privacy should be designed into these systems in order to avoid mobile operators and third parties building up vast logs of information about an individual's personal movemnents without their prior consent.  At present, the majority of people are unaware of the privacy implications of much of the technology they carry around in their pocket.

European Parliament Civil Liberties Committee release report on data protection

A report by the European Parliament’s Civil Liberties Committee has called for businesses in the E.U. to make it more straightforward for customers to access and delete any data stored about them.

The report, released on Wednesday by chairman Juan Fernando López Aguilar, suggested that companies should consider the appointment of specific data protection officers to facilitate this.

Ways to help Big Brother Watch

• Donate to the campaign
• Keep us posted on any stories you see that we might be interested in
• Forward this newsletter to a friend and encourage them to sign up to the mailing list
• Join our Facebook group
• Subscribe to our YouTube channel
• Follow our Twitter feed

CCTV camera in Westminster leads to increase in crime

It has long been the contention of Big Brother Watch that CCTV cameras do not reduce crime, and many believe their use in monitoring vehicle-based crimes serves only to raise finances for local councils. Recently revealed evidence from Westminster is yet more proof of these ideas.

A CCTV camera in the Westminster area of London actually increased its monthly revenue this year from January until May. Despite the camera on Harrow Road raising around £20.000, the number of parking fines issued went up from 60 to 98. The entire justification for CCTV monitoring of parking violations is to reduce infractions, so when it fails to fulfil the main role it is set, alternative methods must be attempted.

Queen’s Park Councillor Paul Dimoldenberg, said:

 …Shopkeepers are currently being badly affected by the CCTV camera and trade is down. The CCTV camera is having no impact on compliance and traders are suffering but the Council say that the CCTV camera will not be re-located. I calculate that the Council has collected almost £20,000 in fines from this camera since it was installed, showing clearly that income generation is more important to the Council than protecting residents from anti-social behaviour or the livelihoods of local shopkeepers.”

Daniel Hamilton on the BBC's One Show discussing the new Police National Database

Welsh Assembly Member suggests fingerprinting every single schoolchild in Wales

The sage of the school playground, Welsh Assembly Member Joyce Watson, has decided the process of getting lunch at schools in Wales is far too simple and it therefore requires fingerprint technology in every school canteen around the country. Her justification stems from the potential for embarrassment for children from poorer backgrounds in Welsh schools.

Supposedly some children from families with financial difficulties had previously felt stigmatised as their peers knew they were receiving free meals due to a ticketing system. Her solution to this problem simply beggars belief.

Ms Watson has suggested installing a fingerprinting system at every school in Wales, at a cost of at least £30,000 per school plus annual maintenance costs of £2,000.

In the middle of the largest international financial crisis seen for decades, it is absolutely shocking that an elected Assembly Member could consider this an effective use of taxpayers’ money.

Stephen Jones, the head teacher of Ysgol Glan-y-Mor in Burry Port, Carmarthenshire came out with this outlandish comment:

“The children like it. It's almost a fun element to having their lunch, the fingerprints. It's much quicker so they're happy about that.”

“The offshoot, I suppose, would be that parents can actually have computerised printouts of all the food and drink that their children consume and they can keep an eye on whether they're having a healthy diet or not.”

An alternative way of viewing it would be an effective method of brainwashing children into volunteering their biometric data without a second thought. Parents are also invited to spy on the diets of their children, an odd concept which many people may find intrusive and offensive.

The pernicious accumulation of biometric data in schools around Britain seems to continue despite constant complaints from parents and children. Pupils from poorer families should not be bullied for their financial circumstances, but there are a variety of other ways this problem could be solved.

A simple, cheap key card system would serve the same role without the excessive cost of £30,000 per school and the invasive use of fingerprint technology. Alternatively, an effective policy of dealing with bullying would remove the need for any kind of technology in school canteens.

There will be a debate in Cardiff bay on Tuesday 28^th June about the introduction of these systems, Big Brother Watch has received a number of complaints from concerned parents in Wales and a petition is currently circulating to raise awareness and express concerns about this ludicrously disproportionate method of providing children with lunch.

Links of the day 22nd June 2011

Please note these are articles and opinions we found interesting, however they do not necessarily represent the views of Big Brother Watch

Ed Miliband and David Cameron clash over DNA legislation

UK banks unaffected by European data breach crackdown

Police database to tackle intelligence failings

US plan to hold EU passenger data for 15 yrs 'unlawful'

 Commissioner orders disclosure of names of public sector workers earning over £150,000

Alleged LulzSec hacker still inside

MP calls for limited in-car smoking ban

LulzSec disavows alleged Census hack

 

MPs move to ban smoking in private vehicles

Today saw yet another assault on the rights of smokers on the floor of the House of Commons.

Alex Cunningham, who is apparently the Member of Parliament for Stockton North, today moved the 'Smoking in Private Vehicles Bill' - a move to ban adults from smoking in their cars when children are present.

The bill passed the House of Commons by a margin of 78 to 66 but, due to the constraints of parliamentary time, it is unlikely to ever become law.

Big Brother Watch's position on this proposal is clear: MPs should stop treating adults like children.  You control kids with little rules like this, not grown-ups.

Plenty of people don't want to have others smoking around them, and that's fair enough - but those who still wish to smoke should be free to do so in their own vehicles without interference from the nagging nanny state. 

Alex Cunningham's Bill is just the latest move by the politicians to demonise smokers, a group of people who voluntarily choose to consume a perfectly legal product.  What's next?  A ban on the sale of cigarettes within a one-mile radius of schools?   Banning people from smoking in the street?  Introducing regulations on smoking in private residences?

Cunningham - and his colleagues - should back down.

Links of the day Tuesday 21st June 2011

Has UK gov lost the census to Lulzsec?

Euro commissioner tells Facebook it has nowhere to hide

Elite UK police agency website downed by Lulzsec

Cookie dough – a half-baked recipe for better data protection?

EU Commission data protection is coming to the UK

Daniel Hamilton on The Commentator: If the LulzSec hackers really have got the UK Census, we're in big trouble

This morning, the infamous online hacking group LulzSec issued a statement claiming to have obtained a copy of the entire 2011 Census database. Big Brother Watch Director Daniel Hamilton has written an piece for The Commentator responding to the news:

"The claims this morning from increasingly infamous hacking group LulzSec that they have obtained a copy of the entire 2011 Census are profoundly concerning.

"They come, however, as no surprise to Big Brother Watch who have for months been warning the public about the risks of this information falling into the wrong hands.

"If these rumours are proved to be correct, it will demonstrate that each and every one of the commitments made by the Office of the National Statistics about the safety and security of their databases was entirely bogus."

Click here to read - and comment on - the full piece.

Man arrested after claims of Census data theft appear on the internet

After a hacking group claimed earlier today that they have stolen the date from the 2011 Census, a 19-year-old believed to be a member of the group has been arrested in Essex. He has been named as Ryan Clearly and is currently in custody on suspicion of Computer Misuse Act and Fraud Act offences.

The group, known as LulzSec, have claimed responsibility for a wide range of recent attacks including Sony, the NHS, the Serious Organised Crime Agency and the CIA all in the last two months.

The following statement appeared on the internet this morning from the group:

"Greetings Internets,

We have blissfully obtained records of every single citizen who gave their records to the security-illiterate UK government for the 2011 census.

We're keeping them under lock and key though... so don't worry about your privacy (...until we finish re-formatting them for release).

Myself and the rest of my Lulz shipmates will then embark upon a trip to ThePirateBay with our beautiful records for your viewing pleasure!”

Big Brother Watch has campaigned strongly against the Census this year for a variety of reasons, primarily the intrusive lines of questioning and the danger of the data being lost or stolen. If this threat is true and the personal information of millions of people is released on the internet it will be a hammer blow to both Lockheed Martin and the Office for National Statistics (ONS).

The ONS have released this statement:

“We are aware of the suggestion that census data has been accessed. We are working with our security advisers and contractors to establish whether there is any substance to this”

“The 2011 Census places the highest priority on maintaining the security of personal data. At this stage we have no evidence to suggest that any such compromise has occurred.”

So far no evidence has been provided to confirm the data was stolen and we hope that the claims are false, but if this amount of personal information has been hacked it only serves to highlight the folly of creating such a gargantuan database in the first place.

Big Brother Watch Director Daniel Hamilton has written for The Commentator about the possible consequences. Click here for the article.

UPDATE: The supposedly official Twitter account of LulzSec @LulzSec has denied any involvement in the statement or theft of Census data.

Canadian privacy commissioner issues warning about smart phone and WiFi data collection

The Canadian Information Commissioner Ann Cavoukian has this week issues a warning to consumers about the risks associated with personal smart phones and other devices automatically collecting data on the user's location.

In a report published by her office, Cavoukian argues that privacy should be designed into these systems in order to avoid mobile operators and third parties building up vast logs of information about an individual's personal movemnents without their prior consent.  At present, the majority of people are unaware of the privacy implications of much of the technology they carry around in their pocket.

There is a reasonable expectation, when one uses a mobile phone, that their operator will from time to time assess their location in order to determine factors such as localised signal strength, yet there is no need for such information to be logged on an ongoing basis - just as it is at present.

You can view the full piece here.

Cavoukian's comments are a welcome contribution to the debate and will, one would hope, raise public awareness of this issue.  Only by increasing public awareness and concern surrounding this issue will mobile operators see a worth in adopting privacy concerns as a key business consideration.

Census data stolen, hacked, released..?

And so it begins. A credible boast from a repeat hacker that the data from Census 2011 has been leaked and is going to be released.

Predictable - perhaps inevitable - but rather faster than one might have expected.

Developing...

By Alex Deane

Hat tip: WF

Links of the day Monday 20th June 2011

Please note these are articles and opinions we found interesting, however they do not necessarily represent the views of Big Brother Watch

How to keep your privacy online

New DNA profiling technology could tell police who suspects are in under an hour

Banks told to improve data protection measures

Got a website? Pay attention, Cookie Law will come

Surveillant Society

NHS laptop loss could put millions of records at risk

Google send ‘offensive’ reminder to Gmail users

Google caused a furore yesterday when they inserted a new type of advertisement in Gmail. In an effort to promote its Voice and Video Chat service, and to mark Father’s Day, the company placed a reminder into people’s Google Chat box, saying “Call Dad”.

Many people who lacked a relationship with their father, either due to them passing away or being abusive during childhood, flocked to forums on the internet to complain that it was offensive. Although it is possible to turn off this feature, it is automatically enabled so those without fathers would not have known to turn it off beforehand.

Google may have thought this was a new and unique method of advertising, but in reality it can be intrusive and deeply upsetting. After seeing the response this message has produced, we hope Google will be more considerate of their users in the future. This is not the first time Google have been criticised about privacy, so considering previous concerns it seems strange that they would make a mistake as obvious as this.

European Parliament Civil Liberties Committee release report on data protection

A report by the European Parliament’s Civil Liberties Committee has called for businesses in the E.U. to make it more straightforward for customers to access and delete any data stored about them.

The report, released on Wednesday by chairman Juan Fernando López Aguilar, suggested that companies should consider the appointment of specific data protection officers to facilitate this.

It also recommended that children who use social networking websites such as Facebook and Twitter must be protected by EU data privacy rules

The report received almost complete approval from the Committee, with 49 MEPs voting in favour and only one voting against.

The main conclusions of the report can be found here.

Sega are the latest video games company to be hacked

The hacking spree currently afflicting video games companies has continued with the theft of the personal information of 1.29 million users of Sega Pass. This is the fourth hack in the industry in just a few months after the high profile theft of data from Sony’s Playstation Network, Nintendo and Codemasters.  

The data included names, addresses, email addresses and passwords. The site provides promotional material from Sega as well as allowing users to purchase games. Sega have reassured their customers that no credit card information was stored; however the data taken can be used for phishing attacks to acquire bank details. It has now been temporarily suspended while Sega attempt to investigate how the intrusion occurred. They have released the following statement:

“We sincerely apologise for troubles this incident has caused to our customers. An investigation has been launched to find the cause and channels used for the leakage.”

The website currently shows a message reading:

“SEGA Pass is going through some improvements so is currently unavailable for new members to join or existing members to modify their details including resetting passwords. We hope to be back up and running very soon. Thank you for your patience.”

There is no mention of the hack on the website. The hacking group LulzSec, who admitted responsibility for the hack on Sony, have denied involvement in the incident. The ICO have so far made no comment about the intrusion, despite Sega Pass being based in London.

Daniel Hamilton and Alex Deane: Control orders are an affront to justice

Daniel Hamilton and Alex Deane, the current and former Directors of Big Brother Watch, have today written an joint article for Politics.co.uk on the case for abolishing Control Orders and their replacement with effective alternative measures to fight terrorism.

"Control orders are nothing new. They were first introduced in the United Kingdom six years ago in the Prevention of Terrorism Act under the auspices of "protecting members of the public from a risk of terrorism".

"Control orders give the home secretary the power to impose more stringent conditions on the movements and daily lives of individuals than those the Burmese military have placed on Aung San Suu Kyi. Those subjected to control orders can not only be placed under effective house arrest but banned from associating with family members, owning mobile phones or attending their place of work - all without charge, without effective recourse to appeal and without knowledge of their accuser."

Click here to view the full article.

Weekly newsletter

Welcome to the Big Brother Watch newsletter!

It was another busy week for the Big Brother Watch team with news of a new national Police database which is set to hold the details of a quarter of the population, calls for the government to review controversial stop-and-search powers and a scandal surrounding the covert surveillance of Julian Assange.  Each of these stories - and much more - are explored in more depth below.

As always, please do get in touch with us if there is a case you'd like our assistance with or a story you'd like to draw our attention to. 

You can find our full contact details on our website at http://www.bigbrotherwatch.org.uk.  You can find Big Brother Watch on Twitter at @bbw1984.

Media Highlights

Metro - One in four Britons on Police database

But Daniel Hamilton, director of civil liberties group Big Brother Watch, said: ‘The police need to give the public a cast iron guarantee that innocent people’s details will never make their way on to this database.’

BBC News - Anti-terror stop-and-search powers need 'safeguards'

Daniel Hamilton, director of the Big Brother Watch campaign group, said: "While we welcome the conclusions [of JCHR] they could have gone much further.

"Rather than a genuine counter-terrorism and crime-fighting tool, stop and search has been a way of bullying and hassling our increasingly abject population.

"We have to decide what kind of society we want to live in. Arbitrary stop and search powers allow the state to confront an individual in the street, without cause, and demand their papers. It's wrong." 

Daily Telegraph - WikiLeaks: Government 'spying' on Julian Assange during house arrest

Daniel Hamilton, a director for civil liberties campaign group Big Brother Watch, said the cameras should be taken down.

He said: “Regardless of the allegations made against Mr Assange, he has not been charged with any crime.

“For his movements – and those of his visitors – to be monitored in this way constitutes an outrageous invasion of personal privacy. These cameras must be removed immediately.

“The Police and Home Secretary should make a clear and unequivocal statement that this type of underhand surveillance will not be tolerated in the United Kingdom.”  

Daily Mail - Sainsbury's supermarket staff are being trained as government 'health spies'

 Daniel Hamilton, of the campaign group Big Brother Watch, said: ‘It strikes me as something that will make a lot of people uncomfortable. They are trying to do the right thing but they have to be careful about how they do it.’

The Guardian - Privacy groups take Royston's ANPR plans to ICO 

No CCTV, Privacy International and Big Brother Watch say that they fear the project might foreshadow similar work across the country. "The use of ANPR by the police in the UK has not been as the result of any Parliamentary debate, Act of Parliament or even a Statutory Instrument," they say in their complaint. The government is proposing a code of conduct on the use of ANPR, but the complaint says this would not be legally enforceable.   

Yorkshire Post - (Op-Ed) Daniel Hamilton: It’s time to defend our freedom and lift this ban

Daniel Hamilton is director of Big Brother Watch.

OVER the past decade, there has been a significant expansion of the amount and scope of anti-terrorist legislation implemented in the UK.

The growth of the authoritarian state is inextricably linked to what Tony Blair once called the “changing rules of the game” – a new form of terrorism that defies borders and harnesses technology to achieve its poisonous goals.

IT Pro - CCTV service Internet Eyes forced into privacy changes 

Daniel Hamilton, director of the Big Brother Watch, was not convinced the ICO had gone far enough.

"Today's ruling does little to address fundamental concerns many have about this system and its impact upon personal privacy," Hamilton told IT Pro.

"It's fundamentally wrong to hand untrained and unaccountable voyeurs the power to monitor CCTV images.  This should be left to trained professionals." 

UOL Noticias (Brazil) - WikiLeaks afirma que governo britânico espiona Assange

O diretor do grupo defensor das liberdades civis "Big Brother Watch", Daniel Hamilton, disse nesta quinta-feira que as câmeras deveriam ser retiradas do lugar.

"Apesar das acusações contra Assange, ele não foi condenado por nenhum crime. O fato de seus movimentos e os de seus visitantes serem vigiados desta maneira é uma degradante invasão de privacidade. Estas câmeras deveriam ser retiradas imediatamente", avaliou Hamilton.

Blogs of the Week

Immigrant or criminal?

Recently I landed at Heathrow Airport after a trip to the US.  Upon returning to London, I was looking forward to getting to my flat and preparing to go back to work the next morning.  I was home and I could relax after a long flight.  But first, immigration.  Did I mention I’m foreign..

Education Bill sparks human rights controversy

The Education Bill, which started its Second Reading in the House of Lords on Tuesday, could possibly fall foul of human rights laws due to some rather intrusive measures. Currently school staff in England are only able to search a pupil if they believe they have a ‘prohibited item’ on their person or in their belongings. These can include weapons, alcohol or drugs.

Police in Tredworth, Gloucestershire install broken CCTV… twice

Considering the bad press that CCTV often receives for being expensive, useless and often mismanaged, when the residents of Tredworth in Gloucestershire actively asked police to install cameras due to the vandalism of their cars in the high street, you would have expected them to check they worked first.

Leaks reveal misinformation from University of Nottingham concerning student detained for ‘terrorist activities’

In May 2008, University of Nottingham student Rizwaan Sabir and staff member Hicham Yezza were arrested by counter-terrorism officers causing huge controversy. Sabir had downloaded an al-Qaida training manual as research for a dissertation he was producing, and asked Yezza, editor of a political magazine called Ceasefire, for his help in drafting a PhD proposal. University officials alerted the police and the men were held in police custody for six days.

Surrey Council Council fined £120k for e-mail data security blunders

We at Big Brother Watch have long complained about the unwillingness of the Information Commissioner to effectively use his powers to name, shame and fine those who are guilty of gross abuses of data protection law.  While these powers are used rarely, they are occasionally utilised for good effect.

One case where the ICO has shown a willingness to act is against Surrey County Council for their incompetence in e-mailing personal medical and welfare data of hundreds of people to the wrong recipients on three separate occasions.

Ways to help Big Brother Watch

• Donate to the campaign
• Keep us posted on any stories you see that we might be interested in
• Forward this newsletter to a friend and encourage them to sign up to the mailing list
• Join our Facebook group
• Subscribe to our YouTube channel
• Follow our Twitter feed

Immigrant or criminal?

By Maria Fort

Recently I landed at Heathrow Airport after a trip to the US.  Upon returning to London, I was looking forward to getting to my flat and preparing to go back to work the next morning.  I was home and I could relax after a long flight.  But first, immigration.  Did I mention I’m foreign?

After waiting in the queue, I made my way to the UKBA officer to whom I handed my passport, landing card and residence permit, or more accurately, my foreign national ID card.  The agent briefly looked at my passport to see that the photo matched my ID card before closing it, putting it down on the desk and running my card, complete with microchip, through an electronic reader.   Then without looking at my face, she asked me a number of questions while eyeing her computer where my personal details were flashing across the screen.  Details that wouldn’t be taken from a citizen unless arrested for a crime.

Last year when the coalition government came into power, it only took days to announce the scrapping of a national identity card scheme on the grounds that it was expensive, obtrusive and violated the civil liberties of law-abiding Britons.  So what is the difference between a law-abiding citizen and a law-abiding resident?  I filled in the paperwork as required.  I met all the criteria.  I stood in line for hours to have my fingerprints, photos and personal details taken by a government agency bent on criminalising those who follow the rules.  ID cards for foreign nationals are meant to target tougher border controls, but fail to address the estimated 180,000-plus people that have overstayed visas since 2007, effectively violating the rights of only those that obey the terms of their stay in the UK.  So how do ID cards resolve the problem then?

They don’t.  But we knew that.  Only days ago the UKBA was termed ‘not fit for purpose’ by Keith Vaz MP and a Home Affairs select committee report expresses deep concerns with the agency’s effectiveness.  ID cards don’t prevent illegal immigration.  ID cards don’t prevent people overstaying visas.  ID cards criminalise the individuals following immigration law to the letter.  Scrap the card, do unto your hard-working visitors as you would to your nationals.  Respect my rights as much as I respect your system.  Target the policy problems, not the limits of intrusion.

Surrey Council Council fined £120k for e-mail data security blunders

We at Big Brother Watch have long complained about the unwillignness of the Information Commissioner to effectively use his powers to name, shame and fine those who are guilty of gross abuses of data protection law.  While these powers are used rarely, they are occasionally utilised for good effect.

One case where the ICO has shown a willingness to act is against Surrey County Council for their incompetence in e-mailing personal medical and welfare data of hundreds of people to the wrong recipients on three seperate occasions.

According to a report in the Surrey Herald:

"A member of one of the council’s Adult Social Care teams emailed a file containing sensitive personal information relating to 241 individuals’ physical and mental health to the wrong group email address.

"The group email address included a large number of transportation companies, including taxi firms, coach and mini bus hire services.

"The council attempted to recall the email, but was later unable to confirm that all the recipients had destroyed it.

"As the information was not encrypted or password protected, it had the potential to be viewed by a significant number of unauthorised individuals.

"A second misdirected email sent on June 22, 2010, lead to confidential personal data relating to a number of individuals being mistakenly emailed to more than 100 unintended recipients who had registered to receive a council newsletter.

"In a third incident, the council’s Children Services department sent confidential sensitive information, which included data relating to an individual’s health, to the wrong internal group email address on January 21, 2011."

You can view the whole story here.

Education Bill sparks human rights controversy

The Education Bill, which started its Second Reading in the House of Lords on Tuesday, could possibly fall foul of human rights laws due to some rather intrusive measures. Currently school staff in England are only able to search a pupil if they believe they have a ‘prohibited item’ on their person or in their belongings. These can include weapons, alcohol or drugs.

But in a controversial move the Education Bill will extend this to “any…items which the school rules identify as an item for which a search may be made.” Without any specified items in the bill, this could theoretically include anything. The bill even allows teachers to view the messages and photos on the mobile phones of children, in an effort to crack down on bullying and cyber-bullying.

In addition, a shortage of male teachers in primary schools has led to new measures to allow teachers to search pupils of the opposite sex, although only when they believe there is a risk of serious harm. However, civil liberties groups have inquired why this also applies to secondary schools and sixth-formers.

A spokesman for the Department for Education said:

“We are determined to give teachers the powers they need to tackle bad behaviour in classrooms and keep children safe. Orderly classrooms enhance the rights of all children to learn. We are confident the bill is compatible with Convention Rights.”

It is the responsibility of teachers and other school staff to look after their pupils and attempt to eliminate all types of bullying, but they must be careful not to abuse these new powers. They should only be used when there is a strong suspicion that a child has dangerous prohibited items or is the victim of bullying, not as a general measure to search all pupils as a matter of routine.

Links of the day Tuesday 14th June 2011

Human rights warning over school discipline plans

CCTV website rapped on privacy

Should we repeal the Human Rights Act?

Government split over enforcing the Digital Economy Act

Metro Bank in email error snafu

Commons hit by rash of laptop thefts

CCTV parking blitz nets more than £43k