Changes to data protection laws in the UK

From May 25th 2018 the provisions of the Data Protection Act of 1998 will be replaced in the UK by the EU General Data Protection Regulation, or GDPR (https://www.eugdpr.org).

If you are a data handler working in the genealogy sector, whether a family history society, a records vendor, or a family historian, you may wish to have a glance at the new provisions, as it extends rights of individuals in many ways, including a right to be forgotten. The Information Commissioner's Office has a dedicated Guide to the General Data Protection Regulation available at https://ico.org.uk/for-organisations/guide-to-the-general-data-protection-regulation-gdpr/.

Various archives and libraries have already updated their data protection policies - that for the National Records of Scotland, for instance, is at https://www.nrscotland.gov.uk/files//record-keeping/legislation/nrs-data-protection-policy.pdf.

Chris

For my genealogy guide books, visit http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/p/my-books.html, whilst details of my research service are at www.ScotlandsGreatestStory.co.uk. Further content is also published daily on The GENES Blog Facebook page at www.facebook.com/BritishGENES.