HomeInsightsInformation Commissioner publishes statement on the NHS COVID-19 app

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The Information Commissioner Elizabeth Denham said she was “pleased that the app being launched this month is supported by the necessary consideration of people’s data protection rights”. Ms Denham observed that the Department for Health and Social Care had engaged with the ICO from the start of the project, answering questions on transparency, legality and fairness, making changes in response to ICO feedback, and “appreciating the value of data protection in encouraging public trust and support”.

Ms Denham said that given these “unprecedented times”, it was her responsibility to “both protect people’s privacy rights and take a pragmatic approach to enabling tech innovation to respond to the challenges prompted by COVID-19”. The statement concludes by saying that the ICO’s regulatory role “does not end here” and the ICO will “respond to any changes to the app’s functionality” and “audit the Test & Trace ecosystem”. To read the statement in full, click here.