Subject: Letter from civil society groups expressing concerns regarding fnancial surveillance powers in the Data Protection and Digital Information Bill Dear Secretary of State, We are writing to you as civil society organisations representative of a wide-range of groups and causes, to express our concerns regarding the fnancial surveillance powers introduced in Clause 128 and Schedule 11 of the D. [...] The extensive sharing of such data poses signifcant risks to data security, especially given the Department for Work and Pensions' (DWP) history of data security issues.1 The Information Commissioner has stated that he does not currently view these powers as proportionate.2 As such, they may be unlawful and a breach of individuals’ right to privacy under the Human Rights Act. [...] In some cases, vulnerable individuals have died following the wrongful suspension of benefts.3 The proposed introduction of these powers comes at a time when the DWP has been found by the Public Accounts Committee to have not done enough to “understand the impact of machine learning on customers to provide them with confdence that it will not result in unfair treatment”.4 DWP has also acknowledged. [...] This amount is less than 3% of the estimated annual loss to fraud and error, demonstrating that these powers will not be effective despite their cost to human rights and civil liberties.6 It is important to note that a range of state powers already exist to tackle fraud in the welfare system. [...] Given the clear engagement of the right to privacy and the likely impact of these powers on some of the most vulnerable in society, it was entirely inappropriate that they were introduced late on in the Bill’s passage through the House of Commons at Report Stage - almost 9 months after the Bill was introduced, meaning that they have not been adequately scrutinised by MPs.7 These powers have no pla.
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- United Kingdom
