Data Protection

CMAC Group UK Ltd Data Protection Policy

The aim of this Policy is to define the purpose, direction, principles and basic rules for protecting personal information. All employees and officers (Directors and Company Secretary) must read this policy because it gives important information about:

• the data protection principles with which CMAC Group Limited and any UK based companies within the group (the ‘Company') as a 'Data Controller of personal information, must comply;
• what is meant by standard and sensitive personal information;
• how we gather, use and (ultimately) delete personal information in accordance with the data protection principles;
• where more detailed privacy information can be found, e.g. about the personal information we gather and use about individuals - how it is used, stored and transferred, for what purposes, the steps taken to keep that information secure and for how long it is kept;
• the rights and obligations of individuals in relation to data protection; and
• the consequences of failure to comply with this policy.

1. Introduction

1.1 The Company obtains, keeps and uses personal information about individuals, such as job applicants, current and former employees, temporary and agency workers, contractors and apprentices etc. The Company also processes personal information about customers and suppliers, including their employees, customers and contacts. It does so for a number of specific lawful purposes, as set out in the Company’s various privacy notices.

1.2 This policy sets out how we comply with our data protection obligations and seek to protect personal information relating to individuals. Its purpose is also to ensure that staff and any person who processes personal data for or on behalf of the Company understand and comply with the rules governing the collection, use and deletion of personal information to which they may have access in the course of their work.

1.3 We are committed to complying with our data protection obligations, and to being concise, clear and transparent about how we obtain and use personal information relating to the individuals whose personal information we process, and how (and when) we delete that information once it is no longer required.

1.4 Our Legal Compliance Manager is responsible for data protection compliance within the Company. If you have any questions or comments about the content of this policy or if you need further information, you should contact our Legal team at dataprotection@cmacgroup.com

2. Scope

2.1 This policy applies to the personal data of job applicants, current and former employees (including temporary and agency workers, contractors, interns, volunteers and apprentices), customers and suppliers (including their employees, customers and contacts).

2.2 Personal information is any information that can, directly or indirectly, identify an individual. The information may be processed in hard copy format, such as on paper, or electronically, such as on a computer or in the ‘cloud’. It includes information contained within emails and other electronic messages sent or received through applications such as Microsoft Teams, and any recordings of meetings or recorded messages e.g. voicemails. It also includes CCTV images processed in the workplace by the Company and calls to or from the office that employees, officers and others make or receive, which are recorded.

2.3 We will review and update this policy as and when appropriate. We will circulate any new or modified policy when it is adopted.

3. Definitions of certain terms used in this policy

4.1.1 we will process personal information lawfully, fairly and in a transparent manner;

(This means we will ensure that we always have a legal ground to process personal data and will consider other laws such as the common law duty of confidence; we will ensure that individuals are not surprised by how we use their data and we will be clear with them about our use of their data by providing them with privacy notices)

4.1.2 we will collect personal information for specified, explicit and legitimate purposes only, and will not process it in a way that is incompatible with those legitimate purposes;

(This means we will be clear as to all of the purposes we use data for and we will ensure that we do not use it for purposes that are incompatible with the purposes we secured the data for in the first place)

4.1.3 we will only process personal information that is adequate, relevant and necessary for the relevant purposes;

(This means we will think about what data we need and what kind of data and how much. Given the reasons for processing, we will only collect and use data which we need and no more);

4.1.4 we will keep accurate and up to date personal information, and take reasonable steps to ensure that inaccurate personal information is deleted or corrected without delay;

(This means we will ensure that the data retains its value by ensuring it is accurate and kept up to date)

4.1.5 we will keep personal information in a form which permits identification of data subjects for no longer than is necessary for the purposes for which the information is processed; and

(This means we will know why we collect and make use of data. When we no longer have a need for it, we will erase, destroy or anonymise it)

4.1.6 we will take appropriate Technical and Organisational Measures (TOMS) to ensure that personal information is kept secure and protected against unauthorised or unlawful processing, and against accidental loss, destruction or damage.

(This means that, having assessed what harms might be suffered by individuals when things go wrong with their information, we will put in place appropriate security measures to remove or reduce the risk to a level acceptable to the Company- see our Information Security Management System for further information)

4.2 The Company acknowledges that it must be able to demonstrate that it complies with the above principles and the wider law. The Company will do this by putting in to place appropriate technical and organisational measures such as:

4.2.1 data protection policies and procedures;

4.2.2 taking a ‘data protection by design and default’ approach;

4.2.3 putting written contracts in place with organisations that process personal data on our behalf;

4.2.4 maintaining documentation around our processing activities;

4.2.5 implementing appropriate security measures;

4.2.6 recording and, where necessary, reporting personal data breaches;

4.2.7 carrying out Data Protection Impact Assessments (DPIA’s) for uses of personal data that are likely to result in high risk of harm to individuals, and,

4.2.8 where appropriate, appointing a Data Protection Officer.

4.3 The Company is committed to a data protection by design and by default approach. This means that the need to protect the personal data of individuals and any associated harms must be considered at the earliest stage of any project and whenever personal data is processed. All new projects including new service products that involve the potential processing of personal data must be notified to the legal team.

5. Basis for processing personal information

5.1 In relation to any processing activity, we will, before the processing starts for the first time, and then regularly while it continues:

5.1.1 review the purposes (why we are processing the information) of the particular processing activity, and select the most appropriate lawful basis (or bases) for that processing. It must be one or more of the following:

a. that the data subject has consented to the processing;

(this means any freely given, specific, informed, and unambiguous indication of an individual’s wishes – see consent guidance);

b. that the processing is necessary for the performance of a contract to which the data subject is party or in order to take steps at the request of the data subject prior to entering into a contract;

c. that the processing is necessary for compliance with a legal obligation to which the Company is subject;

d. that the processing is necessary for the protection of the vital interests (life and death matters) of the data subject or another natural person; or

e. that the processing is necessary for the purposes of legitimate interests of the Company or a third party, see clause 5.2 below.

5.1.2 except where the processing is based on consent, satisfy ourselves that the processing is necessary for the purpose of the relevant lawful basis (i.e. that there is no other reasonable way to achieve that purpose);

5.1.3 document our decision as to which lawful basis applies, to help demonstrate our compliance with the data protection principles;

5.1.4 include information about both the purposes of the processing and the lawful basis for it in our privacy notices; and

5.1.5 where sensitive personal information is processed, also identify a lawful special condition for processing that information (see paragraph 6.2.2 below), and document it.

5.2 When determining whether the Company’s legitimate interests are the most appropriate basis for lawful processing, we will, where appropriate:

5.2.1 conduct a legitimate interests assessment (LIA) and keep a record of it, to ensure that we can justify our decision;

5.2.2 if the LIA identifies a significant privacy impact, consider whether we also need to conduct a (more involved) Data Protection Impact Assessment (DPIA);

5.2.3 keep the LIA under review, and repeat it if circumstances change; and

5.2.4 include information about what our legitimate interests are in our privacy notice(s).

5.3 If we are unable to identify a lawful ground to process personal information (from one of the 5 above) then we will not process it.

6. Sensitive personal information

6.1 Sensitive personal information is sometimes referred to as ‘special categories of personal data’ ‘special category data’ or ‘sensitive personal data’.

6.2 The Company may from time to time need to process sensitive personal information. We will only process sensitive personal information if:

6.2.1 we have a lawful basis for doing so as set out in paragraph 5.1.1 above, and

6.2.2 one of the special conditions for processing sensitive personal information applies, e.g.:

a. the data subject has given explicit consent;

b. the processing is necessary for the purposes of exercising the legal rights or obligations of the Company or the data subject;

c. the processing is necessary to protect the data subject’s vital interests, and the data subject is physically incapable of giving consent;

d. processing relates to personal data which are manifestly made public by the data subject;

e. the processing is necessary for the establishment, exercise or defence of legal claims;

f. the processing is necessary for reasons of substantial public interest; or

g. the processing is necessary for occupational health purposes

6.3 The Company does not carry out automated decision-making (including profiling) based on any individual’s sensitive personal information.

6.4 The Company’s privacy notice(s) set out the types of sensitive personal information that the Company processes, what it is used for and the lawful basis for the processing.

6.5 During the recruitment process: the HR department, with guidance from our Legal team will ensure that (except where the law permits otherwise):

6.5.1 during the short-listing, interview and decision-making stages, no questions are asked relating to sensitive personal information, e.g. race or ethnic origin, trade union membership or health;

6.5.2 if sensitive personal information is received, e.g. the applicant provides it without being asked for it within their CV or during the interview, no record is kept of it and any reference to it is immediately deleted or redacted;

6.5.3 any completed equal opportunities monitoring form is kept separate from the individual’s application form, and not be seen by the person shortlisting, interviewing or making the recruitment decision;

6.5.4.'right to work’ checks are carried out before an offer of employment is made unconditional, and not during the earlier short-listing, interview or decision-making stages;

6.5.5 we will only ask health questions once an offer of employment has been made.

6.6 During employment: the HR department, with guidance from our Legal team will process:

6.6.1 health information for the purposes of administering sick pay, keeping sickness absence records, monitoring staff attendance and facilitating employment-related health and sickness benefits;

6.6.2 sensitive personal information for the purposes of equal opportunities monitoring and pay equality reporting; and

6.6.3 trade union membership information for the purposes of staff administration and administering ‘check off’.

7. Criminal records information

The Company does not process Criminal records information. If it were to do so it will do so only where the law allows it.

8. Data protection impact assessments (DPIAs)

8.1 Where processing is likely to result in a high risk to an individual’s data protection rights (e.g. where the Company is planning to use a new form of technology), we will, before commencing the processing, carry out a DPIA to assess:.

8.1.1 whether the processing is necessary and proportionate in relation to its purpose;

8.1.2 the risks to individuals; and

8.1.3 what measures can be put in place to address those risks and protect personal data.

8.2 Before any new form of technology is introduced, the manager responsible should therefore contact our Legal team at dataprotection@cmacgroup.com in order that a DPIA can be carried out.

8.3 During the course of any DPIA, the employer will seek the advice of the Legal team and the views of a representative group of employees and any other relevant stakeholders.

9. Documentation and records

9.1 We keep written records of our processing activities as a Data Controller (Record of Processing Activities ‘RoPA’). The RoPA is used as the basis of our:

9.1.1 privacy notices;

9.1.2 (any) records of consent;

9.1.3 controller-processor contracts;

9.1.4 LIA’s and,

9.1.5 DPIAs.

9.2 We also keep a RoPA for our activities where we process personal data on behalf of others.

9.3 We will conduct regular reviews of the RoPA and update our documentation accordingly.

10. Privacy notice

10.1 The Company will issue a privacy notice from time to time, informing individuals about the personal information that we collect and hold relating to them, how they can expect their personal information to be used and for what purposes.

10.2 This Notice will be provided whether the Company receives personal information direct from the individual or indirectly e.g., through a recruitment agency or through a customer.

10.3 We will take appropriate measures to provide information in privacy notices in a concise, transparent, intelligible and easily accessible form, using clear and plain language.

11. Data Protection Rights

11.1 Individuals have the following rights in relation to their personal information:

11.1.1 to be informed about the Company’s use of their information;

11.1.2 to obtain confirmation that their information is being processed and to obtain access to it and certain other information, by making a subject access request

11.1.3 to have data corrected if it is inaccurate or incomplete;

11.1.4 to have data erased if it is no longer necessary for the purpose for which it was originally collected/processed, or if there are no overriding legitimate grounds for the processing (this is sometimes known as ‘the right to be forgotten’);

11.1.5 to restrict the Company’s processing of personal information; and,

11.1.6 to object to Company processing of personal information.

11.2 For further information about these rights see our privacy notice(s).

11.3 If you wish to exercise any of these data protection rights please contact our Legal team at dataprotection@cmacgroup.com.

`12. Data Sharing

12.1 If the Company should ever share personal data externally it will ensure that it has a legal ground to do so.

12.2 Any request by an external body for personal data must be in writing.

12.3 Any decision to share personal data externally will be justified and documented.

12.4 Any regular sharing of personal data external to the Company (including any joint Controller relationships) will be the subject of a formal Data Sharing Agreement between the Company and the other organisation.

13. Individual obligations

13.1 Individuals are responsible for helping the Company keep their personal data up to date. You should let us know if the data you have provided to the Company changes, for example if you move house or change details of the bank or building society account to which you are paid.

13.2 Employees may have access to the personal information of other members of staff, suppliers and customers of the Company in the course of their employment or engagement. If so, the Company expects employees to help meet its data protection obligations to those individuals.

13.3 If you have access to personal information, you must:

13.3.1 only access the personal information that you have authority to access, and only for authorised purposes;

13.3.2 only allow other Company staff to access personal information if they have appropriate authorisation;

13.3.3 only allow individuals who are not Company staff to access personal information if you have specific authority to do so from Legal;

13.3.4 keep personal information secure – see the Company’s information security policy;

13.3.5 not remove personal data, or devices containing personal data (or which can be used to access it), from the Company’s premises unless appropriate security measures are in place (such as pseudonymisation, encryption or password protection) to secure the data and the device; and

13.3.6 not store personal data on local drives or on personal devices that are used for work purposes, and comply with the Company’s BYOD policy.

13.4 You should contact Legal if you are concerned or suspect that one of the following has taken place (or is taking place or is likely to take place):

13.4.1 processing of personal data without a lawful basis for its processing or, in the case of sensitive personal information, without one of the conditions in paragraph 6.2.2 being met;

13.4.2 access to personal information without the proper authorisation;

13.4.3 personal information not kept or deleted securely;

13.4.4 any other breach of this policy or of any of the data protection principles set out in paragraph 4.1 above.

14 Information security

14.1 The Company will use appropriate Technical and Organisational Measures to keep personal information secure, and in particular to protect against unauthorised or unlawful processing and against accidental loss, destruction or damage.

14.2 Where the Company processes personal information on behalf of another organisation it will put in to place appropriate Technical and Organisational Measures so as to meet their obligations under the UK GDPR. The Company will ensure that it has in place the necessary legal agreements with the organisation(s) setting out that:

14.2.1 the company may act only on the written instructions of the organisation;

14.2.2 those processing the data are subject to a duty of confidence;

14.2.3 appropriate measures are taken to ensure the security of processing;

14.2.4 sub-contractors are only engaged with the prior consent of the organisation and under a written contract;

14.2.5 the Company will assist the organisation in providing subject access and allowing individuals to exercise their rights in relation to data protection- procedures exists for employees to follow should Company receive such a request;

14.2.6 The Company will assist the organisation in meeting its obligations in relation to the security of processing, the notification of data breaches and data protection impact assessments;

14.2.7 the Company will delete or return all personal information (that it does not need for its own purposes to the organisation as requested at the end of the contract; and

14.2.8 the Company will submit to audits and inspections, provide the organisation with whatever information it needs to ensure that they are both meeting their data protection obligations, and tell the organisation immediately if it is asked to do something infringing data protection law.

14.3 Before any new agreement involving the processing of personal information for an external organisation by the Company is entered into, or an existing agreement is altered, the relevant staff must seek approval of its terms by Legal.

14.4 The Company will keep a Record of the Processing it carries out on behalf of an any external organisation.

14.5 The Company will notify the external organisation without undue delay if we become aware of a personal data breach.

14.6 Where the Company uses external organisations to process personal information on its behalf it will ensure that the external organisation put in to place appropriate Technical and Organisational Measures so as to meet their obligations under the UK GDPR. The Company will ensure that it has in place the necessary legal agreements with the organisation(s) and that the external organisation complies with the measures set out in 14.2.1 to 14.2.8 above.

14.7 Before any new agreement involving the processing of personal data by an external organisation is entered into, or an existing agreement is altered, the relevant staff must seek approval of its terms by Legal.

15. Handling, storage and retention of personal information

15.1 Personal data should be classified, labelled and handled as set out in the Company’s Information Classification Policy.

15.2 Personal information (and sensitive personal information) will be kept securely in accordance with the Company’s Information Security Management System.

15.3 The length of time for which data should be retained will depend upon the circumstances, including the reasons why the personal information was obtained. The Company will follow its Records Retention Schedule, which sets out the relevant retention periods, or the criteria that should be used to determine the retention period. Where there is any uncertainty, staff should consult with Legal.

15.4 Personal data (and special category data) that is no longer required will be anonymised by our information systems and any hard copies will be destroyed securely.

16. Data breaches

16.1 A data breach may take many different forms, for example:

16.1.1 loss or theft of data or equipment on which personal information is stored;

16.1.2 unauthorised access to or use of personal information either by a member of staff or third party;

16.1.3 loss of data resulting from an equipment or systems (including hardware and software) failure;

16.1.4 human error, such as accidental deletion or alteration of data;

16.1.5 unforeseen circumstances, such as a fire or flood;

16.1.6 deliberate attacks on IT systems, such as hacking, viruses or phishing scams; and

16.1.7 blagging’ offences, where information is obtained by deceiving the organisation which holds it.

16.2 The Company has procedures for the internal reporting (and recording) of a data breach.

16.3 The Company will:

16.3.1 make the required report of a data breach to the Information Commissioner’s Office without undue delay and, where possible within 72 hours of becoming aware of it, if it is likely to result in a risk to the rights and freedoms of individuals; and

16.3.2 notify the affected individuals if a data breach is likely to result in a high risk to their rights and freedoms and notification is required by law.

17. International transfers

The Company may transfer personal information outside the UK and the European Economic Area (EEA) on the basis that that country, territory or organisation is designated as having an adequate level of protection OR that adequate safeguards are in place.

18. Training

The Company will ensure that staff are adequately trained regarding their data protection responsibilities. Individuals whose roles require regular access to personal information, or who are responsible for implementing this policy or responding to subject access requests under this policy, will receive additional training to help them understand their duties and how to comply with them.

19. Consequences of failing to comply

19.1 The Company takes compliance with this policy (and any other data protection policies or procedures/ guidance) very seriously. Failure to comply with the policy:

19.1.1 puts at risk the individuals whose personal information is being processed;

19.1.2 carries the risk of significant civil and criminal sanctions for the individual and the Company; and

19.1.3 may, in some circumstances, amount to a criminal offence by the individual.

19.2 Because of the importance of this policy, an employee’s failure to comply with any requirement of it may lead to disciplinary action under our procedures, and this action may result in dismissal for gross misconduct.

19.3 If a non-employee breaches this policy, they may have their contract terminated with immediate effect.

19.4 If you have any questions or concerns about anything in this policy, do not hesitate to contact Legal.

20. Validity

This document is valid as of 19th September 2023.

Chief Executive Officer

Peter Slater