Clear Desk Policy

Objective

The objective of the Clear Desk Policy is set guidelines which reduce the risk of a security breach, fraud and information theft caused by documents being left unattended in the Authority’s premises.

Background

The main reasons we have introduced the policy are

• It reduces the threat of a security breach and information theft as confidential information gets locked away
• It ensures compliance with data protection regulations – keeping personal data secure
• It reduces the chance of identity theft
• It shows that the Authority is taking corporate responsibility for the personal data in its care.

Implications

The purpose of the policy is to reduce the opportunity for security breaches, fraud and identify theft. The Home Office latest figures estimates that identity theft cost the UK economy £1.72b http://www.identity-theft.org.uk/ID%20fraud%20table.pdf. Though it is not perceived as a widespread issue by officers, how do you know what people are doing with the data you leave on your desk, when you are not present?

The Policy in Operation

The implementation of the policy is fairly straightforward.

At the end of the working day or when leaving the office for a major part of the day, the officer/director is expected to tidy their desk of papers and any files with personal information in them. The Authority will provide an under desk locker and/or filing cabinets for this purpose. The desk locker or filing cabinets should be locked over night.  This also includes business cards, bits of paper with any personal data on it etc etc stuck to screens or notice boards

Please note the following

The policy is also designed to help reduce the amount of paper that is used in the authority by reducing unnecessary printing (reducing printing costs).  Do not print off documents just to read them. Read them on the screen if possible..

Tips for having a tidy desk

1. If in doubt - throw it out. If you are unsure of whether a piece of paper should be kept ask your line manager.
2. Make sure any office paper is shredded before being put in the recycling bins if it contains personal data.
3. Do not print off emails to read them. This just generates increased amounts of clutter
4. Go through the things on your desk to make sure you need them and what you don’t need throw away.
5. Always clear your desktop before you go home
6. Consider scanning paper items and filing them on the server, in the correct location