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Private eye

13 November 2015 / Tom Morrison
Issue: 7676 / Categories: Features , Data protection , Freedom of Information
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Tom Morrison returns with a review of the world of information law

It has been a busy year for the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), but some significant changes are afoot which makes it unlikely that 2016 will be any quieter.

We started the year with the usual glut of information law-related news including a flurry of enforcement action. This time it was high street shoe retailer Office in the spotlight, having had to enter into an undertaking with the ICO following a hack of Office’s systems which exposed the personal data of over one million of its customers. Contact details and website passwords were held in an unencrypted database on servers which were due to be decommissioned. For businesses this highlights not only the well rehearsed concerns around data security but also the fact that holding onto information for longer than is needed automatically increases risk. For individuals, it is a timely reminder to make sure that you do not use the same password for multiple services otherwise when one is hacked all become vulnerable.

Sadly

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MOVERS & SHAKERS

Birketts—trainee cohort

Birketts—trainee cohort

Firm welcomes new cohort of 29 trainee solicitors for 2025

Keoghs—four appointments

Keoghs—four appointments

Four partner hires expand legal expertise in Scotland and Northern Ireland

Brabners—Ben Lamb

Brabners—Ben Lamb

Real estate team in Yorkshire welcomes new partner

NEWS
Robert Taylor of 360 Law Services warns in this week's NLJ that adoption of artificial intelligence (AI) risks entrenching disadvantage for SME law firms, unless tools are tailored to their needs
The Court of Protection has ruled in Macpherson v Sunderland City Council that capacity must be presumed unless clearly rebutted. In this week's NLJ, Sam Karim KC and Sophie Hurst of Kings Chambers dissect the judgment and set out practical guidance for advisers faced with issues relating to retrospective capacity and/or assessments without an examination
Delays and dysfunction continue to mount in the county court, as revealed in a scathing Justice Committee report and under discussion this week by NLJ columnist Professor Dominic Regan of City Law School. Bulk claims—especially from private parking firms—are overwhelming the system, with 8,000 cases filed weekly
Charles Pigott of Mills & Reeve charts the turbulent progress of the Employment Rights Bill through the House of Lords, in this week's NLJ
From oligarchs to cosmetic clinics, strategic lawsuits against public participation (SLAPPs) target journalists, activists and ordinary citizens with intimidating legal tactics. Writing in NLJ this week, Sadie Whittam of Lancaster University explores the weaponisation of litigation to silence critics
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