What is personal data?
Personal data is data that identifies you or could identify you, for example in a jigsaw effect (when data pieced together identifies you). Personal data includes obvious identifiers such as your name, address, date of birth and national insurance number. But personal data can also include images of you, audio recordings of you, data about your location and information online that identifies you. Personal data must relate to a living person.
Some personal data is more sensitive. We must look after this more carefully for you. This includes data relating for example to your race or ethnicity, political opinions, religious or philosophical beliefs, trade union membership, health, (mental and physical) and sexual orientation. We also handle your financial data and any criminal offence data as sensitive, look after this carefully and keep it secure.