Police forces are unlawfully storing sensitive data of potentially millions of former suspects who have never been charged with a crime, an investigation has found.
Reports obtained by openDemocracy and Liberty Investigates reveal the government’s biometrics watchdog has repeatedly raised concerns about police breaching rules by retaining information of people who had been arrested and then released.
Fraser Sampson, the biometrics and surveillance camera commissioner, highlighted data protection issues in 17 inspections over the past two years. Incredibly, he told us police forces have failed to get a grip on the problem in part because their ageing computer systems don’t allow them to delete data entries in bulk.
