Concerned with partiesÂ’ rights to access personal data, such as credit references; partiesÂ’ rights to prevent information processing for the purpose of direct marketing; partiesÂ’ rights related to automated decision making; and partiesÂ’ rights regarding the blocking, erasing, or destroying of electronic information Violations of the U.K. Data Protection Act of 1998 can result in stiff fines and imprisonment.

In the United Kingdom, a major function of the Information Commissioner is to ensure that firms processing information are doing so in a way that is consistent with the obligations placed on them by various pieces of legislation. One important piece of legislation is the U.K. Data Protection Act of 1998. Two others include the Freedom of Information Act and the Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations.

See Also: Accountability; Cracking; Privacy; Privacy Laws.