Glossary of terms used on this site

Any information relating to a person (a ‘ data subject ’) who can be identified, directly or indirectly, in particular by reference to an identifier such as a name, an identification number, location data, an online identifier or to one or more factors specific to the physical, physiological, genetic, mental, economic, cultural or social identity of that person.

Privacy is the ability of an individual to be left alone, out of public view, and in control of information about oneself. One can distinguish the ability to prevent intrusion in one's physical space ("physical privacy", for example with regard to the protection of the private home) and the ability to control the collection and sharing of information about oneself ("informational privacy"). One can distinguish the ability to prevent intrusion in one's physical space ("physical privacy", for example with regard to the protection of the private home) and the ability to control the collection and sharing of information about oneself ("informational privacy"). The concept of privacy therefore overlaps, but does not coincide, with the concept of data protection.

Privacy by design aims at building privacy and data protection up front, into the design specifications and architecture of information and communication systems and technologies, in order to facilitate compliance with privacy and data protection principles.

A statement made to a data subject that describes how an organisation collects, uses, retains and discloses personal information. A privacy notice may be referred to as a privacy statement, a fair processing statement or, sometimes, a privacy policy. The General Data Protection Regulation requires a controller to provide a privacy notice prior to processing and to specify in the privacy notice the legal basis for the processing, in addition to other details, such as the contact information for the organisation's Data Protection Officer.

means any operation or set of operations which is performed on personal data or on sets of personal data, whether or not by automated means, such as collection, recording, organisation, structuring, storage, adaptation or alteration, retrieval, consultation, use, disclosure by transmission, dissemination or otherwise making available, alignment or combination, restriction, erasure or destruction.

means a natural or legal person, public authority, agency or other body which processes personal data on behalf of the controller.

means any form of automated processing of personal data consisting of the use of personal data to evaluate certain personal aspects relating to a natural person, in particular to analyse or predict aspects concerning that natural person

means the processing of personal data in such a manner that the personal data can no longer be attributed to a specific data subject without the use of additional information, provided that such additional information is kept separately and is subject to technical and organisational measures to ensure that the personal data are not attributed to an identified or identifiable natural person.

A public authority as defined by the Freedom of Information Act 2000 or a Scottish public authority as defined by the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002.

One of the six legal bases for processing personal data outlined by the General Data Protection Regulation is processing necessary for the performance of a task carried out in the public interest or in the exercise of official authority vested in the controller.

A fair information practices principle and a piece of many privacy and data protection regulations, this is the principle that the purposes for which personal data are collected should be specified no later than at the time of data collection and the subsequent use of that personal data is limited to the fulfilment of those purposes or such others as are not incompatible with those purposes and as are specified to the individual on each occasion of change of purpose, or for which there is a further legal basis that would not require notification.