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It's official! Data Protection Act 2018 given Royal Assent today

Today, the Queen gave Royal Assent to the Data Protection Act 2018, which was first announced in the Queen's Speech on the 21^st June 2017. The new act comes into effect on Friday 25 May 2018.

The previous legislation - the Data Protection Act 1998, has served us well and placed the UK at the front of global data protection standards. In its place, the Data Protection Act 2018 modernises the protection of personal data in the UK in a way properly addresses our increasingly digital economy and society. The Information Commissioner, Elizabeth Denham, blogged and tweeted earlier today, this is a data protection law that is built to last.

This Act has a number of purposes:

1. To make bring the UK's data protection laws into the digital age, in which an ever increasing amount of data is being processed;
2. To empower people to take control of their data and to protect their fundamental rights to privacy;
3. To support UK businesses and organisations through the change;
4. To ensure that the UK is prepared for the future, and can still trade with the European Union after Brexit;
5. To repeal and replace the Data Protection Act 1998 with a comprehensive and modern framework for data protection in the UK, with stronger sanctions for the misuse of personal data;
6. To set new standards for protecting personal data, in accordance with the General Data Protection Regulation, giving people more control over use of their data, and providing them with new rights to access, move and restrict the use of their personal data.

Watch this space for updates on when the new ePrivacy Regulation will come into force to replace PECR.

By Dan Crayford

For further information or advice on GDPR or data protection contact Dan.Crayford@forbessolicitors.co.uk in the Commercial team or Sarah.Wilkinson@forbessolicitors.co.uk or on 01254 662831 in the Insurance team.

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