Sussex Police reprimanded for unlawfully recording thousands of phone calls
Surrey Police force has also come under fire after the rollout of an app to staff work phones was found to record all incoming and outgoing calls
Last updated 18th Apr 2023
Sussex police is one of two forces that have been reprimanded by the data watchdog for unlawfully recording 200,000 phone conversations and capturing personal data.
The Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) issued the rebuke to Surrey and Sussex police forces after the rollout of an app to the work phones of 1,015 staff members that recorded all incoming and outgoing calls.
The automatic recordings made since 2016 included "highly sensitive" conversations with victims, witnesses and perpetrators of suspected crimes.
The ICO said it considered issuing a ÂŁ1 million fine to both forces but opted for the reprimand to reduce the impact on public services.
A spokesman said: "The ICO considered it highly likely that the app captured a large variety of personal data during these calls and it considered that the processing of some of this data was unfair and unlawful.
"Police officers that downloaded the app were unaware that all calls would be recorded, and people were not informed that their conversations with officers were being recorded.
"The app was first made available in 2016 and was originally intended to be used as recording software by a small number of specific officers, but Surrey Police and Sussex Police chose to make the app available for all staff to download.
"The app has now been withdrawn from use and the recordings, other than those considered to be evidential material, have been destroyed."
Stephen Bonner, ICO deputy commissioner, said: "Sussex Police and Surrey Police failed to use people's personal data lawfully by recording hundreds of thousands of phone calls without their knowledge.
"People have the right to expect that when they speak to a police officer, the information they disclose is handled responsibly.
"We can only estimate the huge amount of personal data collected during these conversations, including highly sensitive information relating to suspected crimes.
"The reprimand reflects the use of the ICO's wider powers towards the public sector as large fines could lead to reduced budgets for the provision of vital services.
"This case highlights why the ICO is pursuing a different approach, as fining Surrey Police and Sussex Police risks impacting the victims of crime in the area once again.
"This case should be a lesson learned to any organisation planning to introduce an app, product or service that uses people's personal data.
"Organisations must consider people's data protection rights and implement data protection principles from the very start."
The two forces have been told to report back to the ICO within three months to explain how they have addressed the watchdog's concerns and recommendations.
In a joint statement, Sussex and Surrey Police said that in 2017, the forces made the app available for use by a small number of specialist hostage negotiators for the purpose of supporting kidnap and crisis negotiations and maximising public safety.
There was no means at that time of restricting use of the app and, unintentionally, it was enabled for all staff to download without appropriate guidance in place. When enabled, the app records and stores all phone calls made in the mobile device.
The forces took immediate action when the error was identified in March 2020 including removing access to the app, securing evidence and self-referring the breach to the relevant regulators, including the Investigatory Powers Commissioner’s Office (IPCO) and the Information Commissioner’s Office. The Crown Prosecution Service was also made aware.
A thorough internal audit was carried out to establish the number of officers and staff across both Surrey Police and Sussex Police who downloaded the app, the extent to which they used it and the quantity and nature of any material which may have been recorded.
This established that the app was used on 432 phones and that those phones held audio files. The audit also established that 1,024 officers and staff had downloaded the app.
Of these, four users had recordings on their devices which fell within the category of “users who have identified recording(s) that are evidence of an offence that is or was under investigation”.
Three of these related to criminal cases and each of the investigating officers was contacted and advised to ensure that the CPS was informed of the existence of these calls, in accordance with the Criminal Procedures & Investigations Act 1996.
Further enquiries established that only one of these could have had a potential impact if the case progressed to trial.
Both force Professional Standards Departments were fully involved in the findings. At no point was any risk or harm to any data subject identified.
All officers and staff who had downloaded the app were directed to delete any calls they had recorded without listening to them. The app and any files were removed and all mobile devices were reset to ensure that all the files were permanently deleted.
The ICO report also outlined a number of recommendations, the majority which have already been implemented.
A new governance process was put in place, ensuring that all new apps are compliant with current legislation before being made available. All staff are provided with instructions and data protection guidance in respect of the use of any apps via a message which appears on the front screen of all devices.
All existing policies and procedures have been reviewed to ensure that adequate consideration has been given to data subject rights during the processing of personal data.
Both forces use the College of Policing approved package in relation to data protection training, and it is mandatory for all staff to complete an annual refresher.
Temporary Assistant Chief Constable Fiona Macpherson explained: “Police management of personal data is vital and we take rigorous measures to ensure this.
“This case exposed a lack of governance around use of this digital application, and this is regrettable.
“As soon as the error was reported, we took urgent action to ensure that this did not happen again. We initiated a review of all applications available on the corporate Google Play Store to ensure that there are no other applications that may have had similar functionality. A robust process is now in place to ensure any new requests for mobile apps are subject to appropriate due diligence and scrutiny.
“Steps were also taken to mitigate the situation by establishing how many officers had downloaded the app, the extent of their use of the app and any potential impact on upcoming legal proceedings. Officers and staff were also given clear instructions to delete any conversations they had recorded without listening to them.
“We also referred the matter proactively to the two regulatory bodies, ICO and IPCO, for their consideration and have fully complied with their directions.”