Picture of visa application
Visa applicants' details were visible on the web
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Foreign Office breached the Data Protection Act

Government department to launch a more secure visa web site after personal data was visible to others

Tom Young, Computing 13 Nov 2007
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The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) breached the Data Protection Act after personal details of visa applicants were visible to others, the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) ruled today after an investigation.

UKvisas - the joint Home Office and FCO directorate responsible for visa processing – was found to be unsecure in May after some applicants found they could view each others' details.

No organisation is exempt from the Data Protection Act, said Mick Gorill, assistant commissioner at the ICO.

"If organisations fail to take this responsibility seriously, they not only leave individuals vulnerable to identity theft but risk losing individuals’ confidence and trust - we investigate any organisation in breach of the Act," he said.

The FCO has signed a formal undertaking to comply with the principles of the Data Protection Act – if it does not it will face further action from the ICO.

The FCO said it will replace the web site with an entirely new one - visa4UK – which will be security checked on a regular basis.

See also:

Picture of visa applicationForeign Secretary confirms system hit by security breaches will remain shut  30 Jul 2007
Picture of manual visa applicationSecurity breach prompts investigation  21 May 2007
Cap Gemini wins seven-year Prism contract  19 Feb 2002

All Privacy & Data
Tags: Government, Security

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