ICO appoints consultants to put a price on privacy protection

The ICO has appointed Watson Hall and John Leach Information Security to the task following its call for bids to undertake the three-month project (IWR June 19, 2009). At that time, ICO said it aimed at establishing a confident economic case that will help organisations protect privacy and provide a clear rationale to investors.

The project - the business case for investing in proactive privacy protection - will explore methods involved in implementing business processes, procuring information systems and detail the role and value of personal information for organisations that handle it. Organisations in both the public and private sector will be included.

Jonathan Bamford, assistant commissioner, ICO, said: “The consultants will bring together a wide range of views by conducting interviews and inviting comments on a discussion document.

“Data protection needs to be taken as seriously as health and safety at all levels in an organisation. Putting a value on privacy protection and investing resources in it is crucial to help ensure that effective safeguards are in place. The consultants want input from a range of organisations that collect and process personal information to help ensure that the end product is as relevant and useful in practice as possible.”

The discussion document will be available on Friday 14 August 2009 at http://watsonhall.com/privacy.protection and participants are invited to send their responses by September 1 2009.

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