Privacy

An English law firm has been fined £98,000 by the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) after a data breach caused by ransomware. Hackers gained access to the IT systems of criminal defence firm Tuckers Solicitors LLP and compromised more than 24,700 court bundles containing sensitive data s

Lorcan Moylan Burke, associate at Ronan Daly Jermyn, examines how the German courts have been dealing with an issue so far untested in Ireland – claims for non-material damage under the GDPR. The right to compensation under the GDPR is provided for under Article 82 and is one of the more contr

The Data Protection Commission (DPC) grew its headcount by 31 per cent last year and is targeting similar growth in 2022, according to its latest annual report. The DPC has attracted criticism from European data protection experts in the last few years for being under-resourced for its role as one o

MKB Law has become the first law firm in Northern Ireland to achieve the 2022 GDPR certification for law firms from Briefed. Briefed has created bespoke GDPR training for law firms, meeting all ICO standards, which allows firms to annually certify directors, associates, support staff and trainees at

New UK data transfer rules replacing the EU's standard contractual clauses (SCCs) have been laid before Parliament. The international data transfer agreement (IDTA), the international data transfer addendum to the European Commission's SCCs for international data transfers, and a document setting ou

A massive €225 million fine imposed on WhatsApp last year moved Ireland into second place for value of GDPR fines imposed since the regulations came into force in 2018, research by DLA Piper has found. Ireland has issued GDPR fines worth €226.05 million since 25 May 2018, now second only t

Matheson partner Davinia Brennan examines what 2022 might bring in the area of international data transfers. In the post-Schrems II era, legitimising international data transfers can be a burdensome and uncertain exercise. As we embark on 2022, it continues to be one step forward and two steps back

The European Commission has defended Ireland's Data Protection Commission (DPC) from criticism by Dutch and German MEPs. Four MEPs – Sophie in 't Veld and Tineke Strik from the Netherlands, and Cornelia Ernst and Birgit Sippel from Germany – last month wrote to Didier Reynders, the Europ

John Edwards has taken up the role of UK information commissioner. Mr Edwards, who joins on a five-year term, spent the past eight years as New Zealand privacy commissioner and before that worked as a barrister.

The Data Protection Commission (DPC) has issued more than 80 recommendations to Irish political parties after an audit of their data protection practices. In a new 54-page report, the DPC summarised the findings of data protection audits conducted in 26 registered political parties, including all of

The Department of Social Protection and the Data Protection Commission (DPC) have reached an agreement on the processing of personal data in relation to SAFE registration and the public services card (PSC). The data protection watchdog had concluded in August 2019 that there was no legal basis for r

The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) has fined the Cabinet Office £500,000 for disclosing postal addresses of the 2020 New Year Honours recipients online. The ICO found that the Cabinet Office failed to put appropriate technical and organisational measures in place to prevent the

The UK's Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) has today set out data protection standards that companies must meet to safeguard people’s privacy online when developing new advertising technologies (adtech). The privacy standards published in a commissioner’s opinion come as a wa

A legal challenge brought by convicted murderer Graham Dwyer to Irish data retention laws has been bolstered by an opinion from an advocate-general of the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU).

Two solicitors will give evidence to the Oireachtas this afternoon on controversial government legislation concerning birth information and tracing. Data protection experts Simon McGarr, of McGarr Solicitors, and Fred Logue, of FP Logue Solicitors, will address the Oireachtas joint committee on chil