Review of literature relevant to data protection harms (ICO)
A research paper from the ICO
Abstract
Data protection harms can arise through the use or misuse, or loss of personal data, or from an inability to effectively exercise data rights. Data protection harms may have a variety of impacts on individuals, ranging from financial loss, emotional distress and even physical harm. They may also have an impact on society as a whole, including on judicial and democratic processes.
However, the risk of these harms occurring, and the severity of the impact, are not always well understood. The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) commissioned Plum Consulting to carry out a review of existing literature relevant to data protection harms to inform the ICO’s future work to better understand the risks, severity and impacts of data protection harms, both to individuals and society as a whole.