Can a person use the Data Protection Act to request personal information that has been deposited in an archive?
A typical question presented to the Archive is whether a person can request the release of personal information held about him/her in an interview that had been given by a third party, the research participant? The holder of personal information (the archive) does not have to comply with the request if the third party (who provided the information) has not consented for the information to be disclosed. If the information given by the third party was given to the researcher, and then to the archive, with the expectation it would be kept confidential, then the archive is not obliged to release the information. The UK Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) technical guidance note recommends that “in most cases where a clear duty of confidentiality does exist, it will usually be reasonable to withhold third party information unless you have the consent of the third party individual to disclose it.” See, Dealing with subject access requests involving other people’s information.
Related Questions
- How do I ask for information under the Freedom of Information (FOI) Act or submit a Subject Access Request under the Data Protection Act?
- Can a person use the Freedom of Information (FoI) Act to request research data that has been deposited in an archive?
- Who can make a request under the Data Protection Act 1998?
