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Privacy Policy

OBJECTIVES OF THE POLICY

NETDZINE Ltd’s objectives for the policy are

  • that it should enable the company to meet its own requirements for the management of personal information;
  • that it should support organisational objectives and obligations; that it should impose controls in line with the company’s acceptable level of risk;
  • that it should ensure the company meets applicable statutory, regulatory, contractual and/or professional duties; and that it should protect the interests of individuals and other key stakeholders.

 

NETDZINE LTD IS COMMITTED TO COMPLYING WITH DATA PROTECTION AND GOOD PRACTICE INCLUDING:

a. processing personal information only where this is strictly necessary for legitimate business purposes;
b. collecting only the minimum personal information required for these purposes and not processing excessive personal information;
c. providing clear information to individuals about how their personal information will be used and by whom;
d. only processing relevant and adequate personal information;
e. processing personal information fairly and lawfully;
f. maintaining an inventory of the categories of personal information processed by the company;
g. keeping personal information accurate and, where necessary, up to date;
h. retaining personal information only for as long as is necessary for legal or regulatory reasons or, for legitimate organisational purposes;
i. respecting individuals’ rights in relation to their personal information, including their right of subject access;
j. keeping all personal information secure;
k. only transferring personal information outside the EU in circumstances where it can be adequately protected;
l. the application of the various exemptions allowable by data protection legislation;
m. where appropriate, identifying internal and external stakeholders and the degree to which these stakeholders are involved in the governance of the company
n. the identification of workers with specific responsibility and accountability for processing personal information.

The policy applies to all employees [and interested parties] of NETDZINE Ltd such as outsourced suppliers. Any breach of the GDPR or this policy will be dealt with under the company’s disciplinary policy and may be a criminal offence, in which case the matter must be reported as soon as possible to the appropriate authorities.

Partners and any third parties working with or for the company, and who have or may have access to personal information, are expected to have read, understood and to comply with this policy.

No third party may access personal data held by the company without having first entered into a data confidentiality agreement, which imposes on the third-party obligations no less onerous than those to which the company is committed, and which gives the company the right to audit compliance with the agreement.

BACKGROUND TO THE GENERAL DATA PROTECTION REGULATION ('GDPR')

The General Data Protection Regulation 2016 replaces the EU Data Protection Directive of 1995 and supersedes the laws of individual Member States that were developed in compliance with the Data Protection Directive 95/46/EC. Its purpose is to protect the “rights and freedoms” of living individuals, and to ensure that personal data is not processed without their knowledge, and, wherever possible, that it is processed with their consent.

Data controller – the natural or legal person, public authority, agency or other body which, alone or jointly with others, determines the purposes and means of the processing of personal data; where the purposes and means of such processing are determined by Union or Member State law, the controller or the specific criteria for its nomination may be provided for by Union or Member State law.

Data subject – any living individual who is the subject of personal data held by an organisation.

Establishment – the main establishment of the controller in the EU will be the place in which the controller makes the main decisions as to the purpose of its data processing activities. The main establishment of a processor in the EU will be its administrative centre. If a controller is based outside the EU, it will have to appoint a representative in the jurisdiction in which the controller operates, to act on behalf of the controller and deal with supervisory authorities.

Personal data – any information relating to an identified or identifiable natural person ('data subject'); an identifiable natural person is one who can be identified, directly or indirectly, in particular by reference to an identifier such as a name, an identification number, location data, an online identifier or to one or more factors specific to the physical, physiological, genetic, mental, economic, cultural or social identity of that natural person.

Special categories of personal data – personal data revealing racial or ethnic origin, political opinions, religious or philosophical beliefs, or trade-union membership, and the processing of genetic data, biometric data for the purpose of uniquely identifying a natural person, data concerning health or data concerning a natural person's sexual orientation.

Processing – any operation or set of operations which is performed on personal data or on sets of personal data, whether by automated means, such as collection, recording, organisation, structuring, storage, adaptation or alteration, retrieval, consultation, use, disclosure by transmission, dissemination or otherwise making available, alignment or combination, restriction, erasure or destruction.

Profiling – is any form of automated processing of personal data intended to evaluate certain personal aspects relating to a natural person, or to analyse, or predict that person’s performance at work, economic situation, location, health, personal preferences, reliability, or behaviour. This definition is linked to the right of the data subject to object to profiling and a right to be informed about the existence of profiling, of measures based on profiling and the envisaged effects of profiling on the individual.

Personal data breach – a breach of security leading to the accidental, or unlawful, destruction, loss, alteration, unauthorised disclosure of, or access to, personal data transmitted, stored or otherwise processed. There is an obligation on the controller to report personal data breaches to the supervisory authority and where the breach is likely to adversely affect the personal data or privacy of the data subject.

Data subject consent - means any freely given, specific, informed and unambiguous indication of the data subject's wishes by which he or she, by a statement or by a clear action, signifies agreement to the processing of personal data.

Child – the GDPR defines a child as anyone under the age of 16 years old. The processing of personal data of a child under 13 years of age is only lawful if parental or custodian consent has been obtained.

Third party – a natural or legal person, public authority, agency or body other than the data subject, controller, processor and persons who, under the direct authority of the controller or processor, are authorised to process personal data.

Filing system – any structured set of personal data, which are accessible according to specific criteria, whether centralised, decentralised or dispersed on a functional or geographical basis.

RESPONSIBILITIES UNDER THE GENERAL DATA PROTECTION REGULATION

NETDZINE Ltd is a data controller and/or data processor under the GDPR.

Anyone in managerial or supervisory roles throughout NETDZINE Ltd are responsible for developing and encouraging good information handling practices within the organisation; responsibilities are set out in individual job descriptions.

The Data Protection Officer is accountable for ensuring that compliance with data protection legislation and good practice can be demonstrated. This accountability includes:

  • development and implementation of all applicable policies and procedures in relation to data protection.
  • security and risk management in relation to compliance with the policy.

 

The Data Protection Office has been appointed to take responsibility for the company’s compliance with this policy on a day-to-day basis. In particular, has direct responsibility for ensuring that the company complies with the GDPR, as do Line Managers in respect of data processing that takes place within their area of responsibility.

The Data Protection Officer has specific responsibilities in respect of procedures such as the Subject Access Request procedure and is the first point of call for Employees seeking clarification on any aspect of data protection compliance.

Compliance with data protection legislation is the responsibility of all members of the company who process personal information.

Staff are responsible for ensuring that any personal data supplied by them, and that is about them, is accurate and up-to-date.

DATA PROTECTION PRINCIPLES

All processing of personal data must be done in accordance with the following data protection principles of the Regulation, and the company’s policies and procedures are designed to ensure compliance with them. Personal data must be processed lawfully, fairly and transparently.

GDPR introduces the requirement for transparency whereby the controller has transparent and easily accessible policies relating to the processing of personal data and the exercise of individuals’ “rights and freedoms”.
Information must be communicated to the data subject using clear and plain language. The specific information that must be provided to the data subject must as a minimum include:

  • the identity and the contact details of the controller and, if any, of the controller's representative
  • the contact details of the Data Protection officer, where applicable
  • the purposes of the processing for which the personal data are intended
  • the period for which the personal data will be stored
  • the existence of the rights to request access, rectification, erasure or to object to the processing;
  • the recipients or categories of recipients of the personal data, where applicable
  • where applicable, that the controller intends to transfer personal data to a recipient in a third country and the level of protection afforded to the data
  • any further information necessary to guarantee fair processing.

 

DATA CAN ONLY BE COLLECTED FOR SPECIFIED, EXPLICIT AND LEGITIMATE PURPOSES

Data obtained for specified purposes must not be used for a purpose that differs from those formally notified to the data subject.

PERSONAL DATA MUST BE ADEQUATE. RELEVANT AND LIMITED TO WHAT IS NECESSARY FOR PROCESSING

  • The Data Protection Officer is the GDPR Owner and is responsible for ensuring that information, which is not strictly necessary for the purpose for which it is obtained, is not collected.
  • All data collection forms (electronic or paper-based), including data collection requirements in new information systems, must be approved by the Data Protection Officer.
  • The Data Protection Officer will ensure that, on an annual basis all data collection methods are reviewed by either [internal audit/external experts] to ensure that collected data continues to be adequate, relevant and not excessive.
  • If data is given or obtained that is excessive or not specifically required by the company’s documented procedures, the DPO is responsible for ensuring that it is securely deleted or destroyed in line with the company’s policy for disposal of storage media.

PERSONAL DATA MUST BE ACCURATE AND KEPT UP TO DATE

  • Data that is kept for a long time must be reviewed and updated as necessary. No data should be kept unless it is reasonable to assume that it is accurate.
  • The company is responsible for ensuring that all staff are trained in the importance of collecting accurate data and maintaining it.
  • It is also the responsibility of individuals to ensure that data held by the company is accurate and up-to-date. Completion of an appropriate registration or application form etc. will be taken as an indication that the data contained therein is accurate at the date of submission.
  • Staff should notify the company of any changes in circumstance to enable personal records to be updated accordingly. It is the responsibility of the company to ensure that any notification regarding change of circumstances is noted and acted upon.
  • The DPO is responsible for ensuring that appropriate additional steps are taken to keep personal data accurate and up to date, taking into account the volume of data collected, the speed with which it might change and any other relevant factors.
  • On at least an annual basis, The Data Protection Officer will review all the personal data maintained by the company, by reference to the Data Inventory Register. The DPO will identify any data that is no longer required in the context of the registered purpose and will arrange to have that data securely deleted/destroyed in line with the company’s policy for disposal of storage media.
  • The DPO is responsible for making appropriate arrangements that, where third party organisations may have been passed inaccurate or out-of-date personal information it is not to be used to inform decisions about the individuals concerned; and for passing any correction to the personal information to the third party where this is required.

 

PERSONAL DATA MUST BE KEPT IN A FORM SUCH THAT THE DATA SUBJECT CAN BE IDENTIFIED ONLY AS LONG AS NECESSARY FOR PROCESSING

  • Where personal data is retained beyond the processing date, it will be kept secure in order to protect the identity of the data subject in the event of a data breach.
  • Personal data will be retained in line with retention of records policy and, once its retention date is passed, it must be securely destroyed as set out in that policy.
  • The Data Protection Officer must specifically approve any data retention that exceeds the retention periods defined in the company’s record retention policy and must ensure that the justification is clearly identified and in line with the requirements of the data protection legislation. This approval must be written.

 

PERSONAL DATA MUST BE PROCESSED IN A MANNER THAT ENSURES ITS SECURITY

 While personal data is being processed its security should be maintained and not exposed to unauthorized parties.

MEASURES SHALL BE TAKEN AGAINST UNAUTHORISED  OR UNLAWFUL PROCESSING, ACCIDENTAL LOSS OR DAMAGE TO, PERSONAL DATA

Controls have been selected on the basis of identified risks to personal data, and the potential for damage or distress to individuals whose data is being processed.

Security controls will be subject to audit and review.

TRANSFER OF PERSONAL DATA

Personal Data shall not be transferred to a country or territory outside the European Union unless that country or territory ensures an adequate level of protection for the ‘rights and freedoms’ of data subjects in relation to the processing data of personal.

ACCOUNTABILITY

The GDPR introduces the principle of accountability which states that the controller is not only responsible for ensuring compliance but for demonstrating that each processing operation complies with the requirements of the GDPR.

Specifically, controllers are required to maintain necessary documentation of all processing operations, implement appropriate security measures, perform DPIAs (Data Processing Impact Assessment), comply with requirements for prior notifications, or approval from supervisory authorities and appoint a Data Protection Officer if required.

  • Data subjects have the following rights regarding data processing, and the data that is recorded about them:
  • To make subject access requests regarding the nature of information held and to whom it has been disclosed.
  • To prevent processing likely to cause damage or distress.
  • To prevent processing for purposes of direct marketing.
  • To be informed about the mechanics of automated decision-taking process that will significantly affect them.
  • Not to have significant decisions that will affect them taken solely by automated process.
  • The right for personal data to be provided to them in a structured, commonly used and machine-readable format, and the right to have that data transmitted to another controller.
  • The right to object to any automated profiling without consent.

 

CONSENT

NETDZINE Ltd understands ‘consent’ to mean that it has been explicitly and freely given, specific, informed and unambiguous indication of the data subject’s wishes by which he or she by statement, or by a clear action, signifies agreement to the processing of personal data relating to him or her. The consent of the data subject can be withdrawn at any time.

NETDZINE Ltd understands ‘consent’ to mean that the data subject has been fully informed of the intended processing and has signified their agreement, while in a fit state of mind to do so and without pressure being exerted upon them. Consent obtained under duress or on the basis of misleading information will not be a valid basis for processing. There must be some active communication between the parties, which demonstrate active consent.

Consent cannot be inferred from non-response to a communication. For sensitive data, explicit written consent of data subjects must be obtained unless an alternative legitimate basis for processing exists.

In most instances, consent to process personal and sensitive data is obtained routinely by the company using standard consent documents.

SECURITY OF DATA

All Employees are responsible for ensuring that any personal data, which the company holds and for which they are responsible, is kept securely and is not under any conditions disclosed to any third party unless that third party has been specifically authorised by the company to receive that information and has entered into a confidentiality agreement.

All personal data should be accessible only to those who need to use it, and access may only be granted by company Directors. A judgment based upon the sensitivity and value of the information in question, but personal data must be kept:

  • in a secure location with controlled access;
  • if computerised, secured ensuring access only granted to authorised personnel
  • Stored on (removable) computer media, which are encrypted.


Care must be taken to ensure that PC screens and terminals are not visible except to authorised employees of NETDZINE Ltd. All employees are required to enter into an Acceptable Use Agreement before they are given access to organisational information of any sort.

Manual records may not be left where they can be accessed by unauthorised personnel and may not be removed from business premises without explicit authorisation. As soon as manual records are no longer required for reference, they must be removed and destroyed subject to other lawful regulations.

Personal data may only be deleted or disposed of in line with the Data Retention Policy. Manual records that have reached their retention date are to be shredded and disposed of as ‘confidential waste’. Hard drives of redundant computers are to be disposed by an authorised party.

Processing of personal data ‘off-site’ presents a potentially greater risk of loss, theft or damage to personal data. Staff must be specifically authorised to process data off-site.

RIGHTS OF ACCESS TO DATA

Data subjects have the right to access any personal data (i.e. data about themselves) which is held by the company in electronic format and manual records, which form part of a relevant filing system. This includes the right to inspect confidential personal references received by the company, and information obtained from third-party organisations about that person.
Subject Access Requests should be addressed to the Data Protection Officer.

DISCLOSURE OF DATA

NETDZINE Ltd must ensure that personal data is not disclosed to unauthorised third parties, which includes family members, friends, government bodies, and in certain circumstances, the Police. All employees should exercise caution when asked to disclose personal data held on another individual to a third party and should seek authorisation from the DPO before doing so. It is important to bear in mind whether or not disclosure of the information is relevant to, and necessary for, the conduct of the company’s business.

The GDPR permits certain disclosures without consent so long as the information is requested for one or more of the following purposes:

  • to safeguard national security
  • prevention or detection of crime including the apprehension or prosecution of offenders;
  • assessment or collection of tax duty
  • discharge of regulatory functions (includes health, safety and welfare of persons at work);
  • to prevent serious harm to a third party
  • to protect the vital interests of the individual, this refers to life and death situations.

 

All requests to provide data for one of these reasons must be supported by appropriate paperwork and all such disclosures must be specifically authorised by the DPO.

RETENTION AND DISPOSAL OF DATA

Personal data may not be retained for longer than it is required. Once a member of staff has left NETDZINE Ltd, it may not be necessary to retain all the information held on them. Some data will be kept for longer periods than others.

19. ASSIGNMENT

19.1        The Customer will not be entitled to assign the benefit or delegate the burden of the Order without the prior written consent of LAN3 which it may in its absolute discretion refuse.

19.2        NETDZINE will be entitled to assign the benefit or delegate the burden of the Order.

DISPOSAL OF RECORDS

Personal data must be disposed of in a way that protects the “rights and freedoms” of data subjects (e.g. shredding, disposal as confidential waste, secure electronic deletion) and in line with the secure disposal procedure.

If you wish to contact NETDZINE on anything related to Privacy, contact our Data Protection Officer at dpo@netdzine.co.uk