Personal data that is processed for ‘law enforcement purposes’ is covered by part 3 of the Data Protection Act.
It includes processing data and information for the prevention, investigation, detection or prosecution of criminal offences, or the execution of criminal penalties, including the prevention of, and safeguarding against, threats to public security.
It applies to Essex County Council because we are a body that has ‘statutory functions to exercise public authority or public powers for any of the law enforcement purposes’. This would include, for example, our Trading Standards Team, Child and Adult Protection Teams, Traffic Enforcement Team, Coroners and Youth Offending Service.
We have more guidance about how processing information for law enforcement purposes applies to the Data Protection Act 2018.
Law enforcement processing guidance (PDF, 240KB)
Requesting personal data for the prevention or detection of crime
There are some situations where it is necessary to access personal data for the prevention or detection of unlawful acts or legal proceedings.
To ask for data for this purpose, fill in the Request for personal data for the prevention and
detection of crime or legal proceedings form (PDF, 230KB).
Risk of violence warning markers
If you need to place a risk of violence marker on electronic or paper records of a potentially violent individual, you need to follow this procedure:
Violent people warning markers procedure (PDF, 330KB)