Federation warns officers over Data Protection Act

OFFICERS have been warned to check with supervisors if they are unsure about the rules on using police information systems – or face misconduct proceedings.

Andy Hastings, Essex Police Federation’s conduct secretary, said misuse of police systems is one of the main conduct issues the Federation has to deal with.

“Officers know using systems for private purposes is prohibited,” he said.

“But it is the grey areas where officers are coming unstuck. The Data Protection Act (1998) has very tight constraints and officers must use police systems ‘for operational police purposes only’.”

For example, conducting a vehicle check on a vehicle registered to a neighbour or accessing a crime report in relation to a friend who has been a victim of crime is likely to be viewed as checks for personal reasons and not for a legitimate police purpose, according to Police Federation guidance.

“My advice is: if an officer is at all unsure about whether they can check something on the system, they should ask their supervisor, or even ask the supervisor to make the intelligence check themselves,” said Mr Hastings.

Officers who access computer systems to obtain data for a non-authorised purpose are liable to be prosecuted under the Data Protection Act and offences can be punishable with imprisonment.

They are also liable to face misconduct proceedings for failure to meet the appropriate standards of confidentiality or ‘orders and instructions’, and these can be assessed as gross misconduct.