Data protection is the law on how organisations collect, use, keep and dispose of personal information about people. In the UK it is governed, in GOV.UK’s words, “by the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018”. It applies to paper files as well as computers.
The principles in brief
GOV.UK sums up the principles like this. Personal information must be used fairly, lawfully and transparently; for specified purposes; limited to what’s necessary; accurate; “kept for no longer than is necessary”; and “handled in a way that ensures appropriate security, including protection against unlawful or unauthorised processing, access, loss, destruction or damage”. The organisation that holds the information is responsible for showing it complies.
At Wigwam
Storing records that hold personal data. If your business moves client or staff files into a unit, your business stays in charge of them, just as it would in an office records room, and a unit can be a secure home for them. Our document storage page explains how it works. The outside doors have access control, every unit has its own alarm that our security team investigates if it goes off, and our sites have a secure perimeter and CCTV monitored around the clock by a professional monitoring company. You decide who can get in: you can share access with named colleagues, and call us to take someone off when they leave.
A few habits help: keep the index of what’s in each box at the office rather than writing names on the outside, use lidded archive boxes on shelving off the floor, and when files reach the end of their retention period, use a shredding firm that gives you a certificate of destruction.
Your own details. We’re registered with the Information Commissioner’s Office as Wigwam Storage Management Limited, reference ZB710675. Your account is protected by a user name and password, your information is held on secure servers, and you can ask to see, correct or, in some situations, delete what we hold. Our privacy notice has the detail.
Questions? Call us on 0800 2545585.
Related terms
Related questions
- How do you keep my personal data safe?
- Can I share access to my storage unit?
- Who can see when I visit my storage unit?
Further reading
- GOV.UK: Data protection
- legislation.gov.uk: UK GDPR, Article 5