The U.K. Information Commissioner’s Office has found the Metropolitan Police Service violated data protection laws through its use of a database related to alleged gang activity. MPS has used the Gangs Matrix to track potential criminal activity. The ICO’s investigation found the police department did not comply with data protection rules by its failure to distinguish between perpetrators and victims, as well as excessive data processing as a result of sharing information with third parties. In the ICO enforcement notice, the agency has given MPS six months to make changes to the ways it uses the Gangs Matrix, such as performing a data protection impact assessment and erasing the data of individuals who no longer meet the database’s criteria.
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