East Mids businesses warned over data destruction
Almost three quarters of businesses in the East Midlands are unaware of potential fines they face by failing to destroy data on equipment such as computer hard disks, a survey has revealed.
The survey, from data shredding specialist Network 2 Supplies, was taken after new legislation came into force whereby penalties of up to £500,000 con be imposed for serious breaches of data protection laws.
Only 30 per cent of East Midlands businesses said they were aware of the new rules.
Jack Gomarsall, of Network 2 Supplies, said: "The results of this survey are a wakeup call to UK businesses as well as organisations in the public sector. Anyone who stores personal information on computer databases needs to make themselves aware of these new rules and act accordingly.
"Breaches of data protection rules can in some instances cause serious harm to people so it’s vital we take this issue seriously. Organisations have always had a duty of care to prevent unauthorised or accidental release of information about them. Now the penalties for failure to comply with this are severe."
