Businesses should keep personal information secure

Almost half said they had breached the Act on several occasions, and a further 18% said they weren’t sure if they had or not. The survey also revealed 65% of businesses provide no data protection training for their staff, nearly half said there is no one in their business who is specifically responsible for data protection, and 18% said data protection is less of a priority in the current economic climate. Mike Low, Director of Standards at BSI says, ‘The five million small and medium businesses in the UK form the backbone of the British economy. These organisations are handling vast amounts of personal information on a daily basis and while it is encouraging that some already have appropriate data protection measures in place, this survey shows there is still a long way to go.’