Greater ‘right to be forgotten’

Social media firms will be required to delete information on children and adults when asked under new laws aimed at giving people a greater “right to be forgotten” online.

The Data Protection Bill will make it simpler for people to control how companies use their personal details, with extra powers for the information watchdog to issue fines of up to £17 million.

The new powers will mean people can ask social media platforms to delete information they posted in their childhood.

The bill will also require people to give explicit consent for their information to be collected online, rather than firms relying on preselected tick boxes.

The legislation will allow people to ask for their personal data held by companies to be erased; enable parents and guardians to give consent for their child’s data to be used; expand the definition of personal data to include IP addresses, internet cookies and DNA; make it easier and free for individuals to require an organisation reveal the personal data it holds on them, and create new criminal offences to deter organisations from intentionally or recklessly creating situations where someone could be identified from anonymised data.

The legislation will bring the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) into domestic law, helping Britain prepare for Brexit because it will mean the systems are aligned when the UK leaves the bloc.

The Information Commissioner’s Office will be given significantly tougher powers, with the maximum fine it can levy being increased from £500,000 to £17m, or 4% of a firm’s global turnover.

The bill, which was announced in the Queen’s Speech, will be introduced in Parliament when MPs and peers return from the summer break in September.