Data Protection

Please read the information below, which will detail how we collect, handle and store your personal information, in accordance with current laws :

INTRODUCTION All year round clearance needs to gather and use certain information about individuals. These can include clients, suppliers, business contacts, employees within the organisation has a relationship with or may need to contact. This policy informs how personal data must be collected, handled and stored to meet the company’s data protection standards and to comply with the law. WHY THIS POLICY EXISTS The data protection policy ensures All year round clearance: Complies with data protection law and follow good practice Protects rights of clients and staff Is open about how it stores and processes individuals data Protects itself from the risks of a data breach DATA PROTECTION LAW The Data Protection Act 1988 describes how organisations including All year round clearance must collect, handle and store personal information. These rules apply regardless of whether data is stored electronically, on paper or on other materials. To comply with the law, personal information must be collected and used fairly, stored safely and not disclosed unlawfully. The Data Protection Act is underpinned by eight important principles. These say that personal data must: 1. Be obtained only for specific, lawful purposes 2. Be processed fairly and lawfully 3. Be adequate, relevant and not excessive 4. Be accurate and kept up to date 5. Not be held for any longer than necessary 6. Processed in accordance with the rights of data subjects 7. Be protected in appropriate ways 8. Not be transferred outside the European Economic Area (EEA), unless that country or territory also ensures an adequate level of protection PEOPLE, RISKS AND RESPONSIBILITIES This policy applies to: Any and all employees, contractors, suppliers and other people working on behalf of All year round clearance It applies to all data that the company holds relating to identifiable individuals, even if that information technically falls outside of the Data Protection Act 1998. This can include: Names of individuals Postal addresses E-mail addresses Telephone or Mobile numbers plus, any other information relating to individuals DATA PROTECTION RISKS This policy helps to protect All year round clearance from real data security risks including: Breach of confidentiality – for instance, information being given out inappropriately Failing to offer choice – for instance, all individuals should be free to choose how the company uses data relating to them Reputation damage – for instance, the company could suffer if hackers successfully gained access to sensitive data RESPONSIBILITIES Everyone who works for or with All year round clearance has some responsibility for ensuring data is collected, stored and handled appropriately. James and Michelle Scicluna handle personal data and ensure that it is handled and processed in line with this policy and data protection principles. James and Michelle Scicluna these key areas of responsibility:- Checking and approving any contracts or agreements with third parties that may handle the company’s sensitive data. Ensuring all systems, service and equipment used for storing data meet acceptable security standards. Performing regular checks and scans to ensure security hardware and software is functioning properly. Evaluating any third-party services the company is considering using to store or process data. For instance, cloud computing services. Approving any data protection statements attached to communications such as E-mails and letters. GENERAL STAFF GUIDELINES The only people able to access data covered by this policy should be those who need it for their work. Data should not be shared informally. When access to confidential information is required, employees can request it from James Scicluna. Staff should keep all data secure, by taking sensible precautions and following the guidelines below. In particular, strong passwords must be used and they should never be shared. Personal data should not be disclosed to unauthorised people, either within the company or externally. Data should be regularly reviewed and updated if it is found to be out of date, if no longer required, it should be deleted and disposed of. Employees should request help from management or the data protection team if they are unsure about any aspect of data protection. DATA STORAGE These rules describe how and where data should be safely stored. Questions can be directed When data is stored on paper, it should be kept in a secure place where unauthorised people cannot see it. These guidelines also apply to data that is usually stored electronically but has been printed out for some reason. When not required, the paper or files should be kept in a locked drawer or filing cabinet. Employees should make sure paper and printouts are not left where unauthorised people could see them, like on a printer. Data printouts should be shredded and disposed of securely when no longer required. When data is stored electronically, it must be protected from unauthorised access, accidental deletion and malicious hacking attempts: Data should be protected by strong passwords that are changed regularly and never shared between employees. If data is stored on removable media (like a CD or DVD), these should be kept locked away securely when not being used. Data should only be stored on designated drives and servers and should only be uploaded to an approved cloud computing services. Servers containing personal data should be sited in a secure location, away from general office space. Data should be backed up frequently. Those backups should be tested regularly, in line with the company’s standard backup procedures. Data should never be saved directly to laptops or other mobile devices like tablets or smart phones. All servers and computers containing data should be protected by approved security software and a firewall. DATA USE Personal data is of no value to All year round clearance unless the business can make use of it. However; it is when personal data is accessed and used that it can be at the greatest risk of loss, corruption or theft: When working with personal data, employees should ensure the screens of their computers are always locked when left unattended. Personal data should not be shared informally. Sensitive data should be encrypted before being transferred electronically (PDF). Personal data should never be transferred outside of the European Economic Area. Employees should not save copies of personal data to their own computers. Always access and update the central copy of any data. DATA ACCURACY The law requires All year round clearance to take reasonable steps to ensure data is kept accurate and up to date. Data will be held in as few places as necessary. Staff should not create any unnecessary data sets. All individuals who are the subject of personal data held by All year round clearance are entitled to: Ask what information the company holds about them and why. Ask how to gain access to it. Be informed how to keep it up to date. Be informed how the company is meeting its data protection obligations. If an individual contacts the company requesting this information, this is called a subject access request. The data protection team will always verify the identify of anyone making subject access request before handing over any information. DISCLOSING DATA FOR OTHER REASONS In certain circumstances, the Data Protection Act allows personal data to be disclosed to law enforcement agencies without the consent of the data subject. PROVIDING INFORMATION All year round Clearance’s duty is to ensure that individuals are aware that their data is being processed, and that they understand: How the data is being used How to exercise their rights CONTACT FORM - ON THIS WEBSITE When you use the contact form on this website, your information is used to make contact with you, and if stored, is then stored under the rules and regulation already detailed. FEDBACK FORM - ON THIS WEBSITE When you submit feedback to us, we publish that on the ‘Testimonials’ page, with your name and location (if provided). This shows that the feedback is from a real person and is genuine, as you would expect, if you were reading feedback from any other source.