Lawful basis for data collection

When processing personal data it is necessary for there to be a ‘lawful basis’ for the processing to take place. There are numerous forms of lawful basis under which an organisation can process data including:

• Consent – an individual has given you clear and informed consent to process their personal data.
• Fulfilling a contract – for example, it would be necessary to hold and process the personal data of an employee in order to fulfil their contract of employment.
• Legitimate interest – for example, information about the health of an employee or volunteer.
• Legal obligation – for example, if the organisation becomes aware of a safeguarding concern or crime that they are required to disclose to the relevant authority.