Paul Kehoe (Wexford, Fine Gael)
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Question 306: To ask the Minister for Transport the procedures in place to protect personal data within his Department; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31246/07]

Noel Dempsey (Meath West, Fianna Fail)
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All personal data in electronic format is protected using industry best practices. Access to such data is restricted to those officers who have a business requirement to use it. All staff, contractors and consultants to my Department are subject to the Official Secrets Acts and are required to sign appropriate confidentiality agreements and usage policies.

All data replicated from the Department's network to laptops is automatically encrypted. Mechanisms are in place to remotely delete data from any laptop stolen from the Department which connects to the Internet. Procedures are also in place to ensure that all personal data being accessed by teleworkers is not downloaded but is retained securely on Department servers.

Where personal data needs to be, for business reasons, transferred to third parties (for example, transferring salary details to staff bank accounts), this is carried out in a fully secured electronic manner. In the case of the National Vehicle and Driver File (NVDF) large data volumes to third parties are transferred through secure encrypted channels.

My Department regularly reviews its data security in the light of changing circumstances and needs. The most recent such review dealt with an emerging requirement for more mobile data and involved external specialist expertise. The report was delivered on 22 August 2007 and has been evaluated and appropriate measures implemented. Personal data on physical files is secured by restricted access to buildings and is locked away in filing cabinets to which only appropriate staff members have access.