IOM Publishes Data Protection Manual
"http://publications.iom.int/bookstore/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=47&products_id=759">
align="left" alt="IOM Data Protection Manual" border="0" height=
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width="238">IOM has published a manual on how to protect the
personal data of the migrants in its care. It follows concerns
about the general increase in data theft and loss and the
recognition that hackers are finding ever more sophisticated ways
of breaking into personal files.
The IOM Data Protection Manual aims to protect the integrity and
confidentiality of personal data and to prevent inappropriate
disclosure. It is being launched to coincide with Data Protection
Day, which is celebrated on January 28th each year.
The manual is the product of an IOM-funded project designed to
develop a standardized approach to protecting the personal data of
IOM beneficiaries. It is the first publication of its kind to
provide such guidance in the context of migration.
It outlines how staff should handle personal information given
to them by IOM beneficiaries in their care, with a view to
protecting their privacy.
Link
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title="">IOM Data Protection Manual
Data protection is the systematic application of a set of
institutional, technical and physical safeguards that are used to
preserve the right to privacy with respect to the collection,
storage, use and disclosure of personal data.
The right to privacy applies to all individuals, including
migrants, without distinction of nationality and regardless of
their migration status.
In the absence of appropriate safeguards, personal data can be
used for reasons unrelated to its intended purpose, without the
knowledge of the individuals concerned and contrary to their
expectations.
In the migration context, unauthorized and inappropriate use or
disclosure can lead to a number of risks ranging from physical
violence to profiling and discrimination. A migrant, for example,
could be placed in harm’s way if his/her HIV status is
inadvertently revealed in a community where the status is seen as
taboo.
IOM’s strategy for handling personal data seeks to protect
the confidentiality of personal data and the anonymity of the
person concerned throughout the data processing cycle.
"The information age has placed the issue of privacy and
confidentiality at the centre of the public, legislative and media
debate. It is important to ensure that technology is driven by
policy, and not vice versa, particularly with increased use of
advanced technology," says IOM Legal Officer Ruzayda Martens.
Data Protection Day is an awareness day first introduced in 2007
by the European Data Protection Supervisor to mark the anniversary
of the 1981 Council of Europe Convention for the Protection of
Individuals with regard to Automatic Processing of Personal Data.
It is now a global celebration commemorated every year on 28
January.
The IOM Data Protection Manual is available on:
"paragraph-link-no-underline" href=
"http://publications.iom.int/bookstore/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=47&products_id=759">http://publications.iom.int/bookstore/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=47&products_id=759
For more information please contact:
Ruzayda Martens
IOM Geneva
Tel: +41.2.27179448
E-mail:
"mailto:rmartens@iom.int">rmartens@iom.int