The main objective of this booklet is to offer a first approach to theissue of privacy that can serve to raise awareness concerningthe privacy risks related to the use of personal information.

It is addressed to everyone who uses or has access to personalinformation such as employers, commercial and non-commercial organisations, i.e. banks, small traders, insurance companies,doctors, lawyers, accountants, hospitals and clinics, telecommunications and internet serviceproviders, retailers and governmental departments.

The booklet deals with the practical aspectsof using personal information. Personal information concerns for example a person’s financialsituation, political and religious beliefs, race, health and sexuality. This kind of information can give the user of the information potentiallyabusive power over the person whom the information concerns. Therefore, the use storage and security of such information must be controlled.

Privacy concerns must be balanced with the legitimate need of businesses,organisations and authorities to process personal information. To take somesimple examples:

• Employers need to keeppersonal information about their employees in order topay their salary, make social security contributions, track their performance andfulfil their other legal and social obligations as employers.

• Retailers and variousservice providers need to advertise their products or services at the peoplewho are likely to be interested in buying them. Having access to personalinformation saves timeand money and leads to more competitively priced products for consumers.

• Hospitals, clinics and otherhealth care providers must keep information about their patients includingfull medical records and any otherinformation that has to do with patients’ mental and physical health status.This is essential for providing their patients with high quality health care.

• Financial and credit organisations such as banks andcooperative societies need personaldata to minimise the risk of fraud and baddebts.

•   Small traders such as local shops and newsagentsneed personal data for ordering, making deliveries and for accountancypurposes.

• Professionals such as doctors, lawyers andaccountants often need personal data in order to givetheir clients the correct advice.

In terms of the workplace, this booklet deals with employers’ concerns about employees devotingtheir working time to personal business – considered to be a problem – such astrading on the world wide web, surfing for private purposes, playing games,chatting and gambling.

Attention is also given to company liability for employee action, such as contractual liability, infringement of intellectualproperty rights and so on. Similar concerns exist with regard to certain conduct such asharassment of co-workers, especially when predicated on sex, race or otherstatutorily protected category, or when amounting to criminally sanctionedforms of stalking.

Another example of increasing data processing dealt in this booklet is the use ofsurveillance systems. These techniques allow employers to monitor a worker’s presence at work, his whereabouts, his activities,performance and use of working time. Examples of such systems are electronicrecording, video-surveillance, fingerprinting, time registration, badges, data logging and,finally, the use of software for themonitoring of e-mail and internet use. The useof cameras in places other than the workplace such as shops,banks or public premises are also issues dealt with by this booklet due to theextensive debate carried out at the moment on a world-wide basis.