Google data protection breach was ‘significant’

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Google committed a serious breach of the UK Data Protection Act when it collected personal details during its Street View operation, the information commissioner has said.

The search giant could not be hit with a monetary penalty due to the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) fining powers not being retroactive, as previously reported.

Today, however, the ICO ruled Google would not receive any form of punishment.

Instead, Google will have its data protection practices audited by the ICO and has been told to sign an undertaking to ensure data protection breaches do not happen again.

The conclusion to the Google Street View investigation comes just two days after the ICO said it would not be pushed into a “knee-jerk” reaction or bow to pressure to issue a severe punishment.

“It is my view that the collection of this information was not fair or lawful and constitutes a significant breach of the first principle of the Data Protection Act,” said information commissioner Christopher Graham.

"The most appropriate and proportionate regulatory action in these circumstances is to get written legal assurance from Google that this will not happen again – and to follow this up with an ICO audit.”

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