Data Protection Breach fines £500K

The Information Commisioners Office has confirmed it will be able to fine companies found guilty of breaching the Data Protection Act up to £500,000 from April 2010.

The maximum amount has just been approved by the Secretary of State for Justice, after initial provisions for the ICO to impose fines on organisations were passed in May 2008 with the introduction of the Criminal Justice and Immigration Act.

"As citizens, we are increasingly asked to complete transactions online, with the state, banks and other organisations using huge databases to store our personal details. When things go wrong, a security breach can cause real harm and great distress to thousands of people," said Information Commissioner Christopher Graham.

What do you think? will this get the message out? or is it purely a revenue raising tactic against the inevitable breaches we will witness (a Tax on Stupidity?)

http://www.ico.gov.uk/