PART 5Digital government
CHAPTER 4Fraud against the public sector
I158Confidentiality of personal information
1
Personal information received by a person (“P”) under section 56 may not be disclosed—
a
by P, or
b
by any other person who has received it directly or indirectly from P.
2
Subsection (1) does not apply to a disclosure—
a
which is required or permitted by any enactment (including section 56),
b
which is required by an EU obligation,
c
which is made in pursuance of an order of the court,
d
of information which has already lawfully been made available to the public,
e
which is made for the prevention or detection of crime or the prevention of anti-social behaviour,
f
which is made for the purposes of a criminal investigation,
g
which is made for the purposes of legal proceedings (whether civil or criminal),
h
which is a protected disclosure for any of the purposes of the Employment Rights Act 1996 or the Employment Rights (Northern Ireland) Order 1996 (SI 1996/1919 (NI 16)),
i
consisting of the publication of information for the purposes of journalism, where the publication of the information is in the public interest,
j
which is made with the consent of the person to whom it relates, or
k
which is made for the purposes of—
i
preventing serious physical harm to a person,
ii
preventing loss of human life,
iii
safeguarding vulnerable adults or children,
iv
responding to an emergency, or
v
protecting national security.
3
In subsection (2)(e) “anti-social behaviour” means conduct that—
a
is likely to cause harassment, alarm or distress to any person, or
b
is capable of causing nuisance or annoyance to a person in relation to that person's occupation of residential premises.
4
A person commits an offence if—
a
the person discloses personal information in contravention of subsection (1), and
b
at the time that the person makes the disclosure, the person knows that the disclosure contravenes that subsection or is reckless as to whether the disclosure does so.
5
A person who is guilty of an offence under subsection (4) is liable on conviction on indictment to imprisonment for a term not exceeding two years, to a fine or to both.
6
A person who is guilty of an offence under subsection (4) is liable on summary conviction—
a
in England and Wales, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding F3the general limit in a magistrates’ court, to a fine or to both;
b
in Scotland, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 12 months, to a fine not exceeding the statutory maximum or to both;
c
in Northern Ireland, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 6 months, to a fine not exceeding the statutory maximum or to both.
7
8
This section does not apply to personal information disclosed under section 56 by the Revenue and Customs.