Data Collection: a simple guide

Summary

This is a simple guidance note from the ODPA explaining how organisations should collect personal data from individuals in a way that complies with the principles of the Data Protection (Bailiwick of Guernsey) Law, 2017. It is aimed at organisations acting as controllers under the Law, i.e. anyone who processes personal data.

• Scope of the Law: Applies to any organisation (a controller) that processes personal data, meaning any information relating to an identified or identifiable living individual, and any activity done with that data.
• Registration requirement: Organisations that process personal data are legally obliged to maintain an annual registration with the ODPA; separate registration guidance explains when registration is required and how to create one.
• Why data collection matters: Getting data collection right at the outset supports compliance with the Law's principles throughout the entire lifecycle of the data's use.

The document is informational guidance rather than binding legal text, but it points to an underlying statutory obligation: maintaining annual registration if personal data is processed.

Key obligations

• Organisations that process personal data must maintain an annual registration with the ODPA

Applies to

controllers (organisations that process personal data)

Deadlines

• annually: Organisations processing personal data must maintain an annual registration with the ODPA