Social Security's privacy policy

​​Employment, Social Security and Housing (ESSH) is registered with the Office of the Information Commissioner as a Controller and a Processor.

The Data Protection Law requires us to have a privacy policy which tells you how and why we process your information. This privacy policy only relates to personal data controlled by the Minister for Social Security.

Personal information is anything that can identify you as an individual, either on its own or by reference to other information. 

We are serious about looking after your personal information and protecting your privacy because we want you to have trust and confidence in us and the work we do.

We’d like to explain how we look after your personal information and protect your privacy.

There are rules about what personal information we process. When we say “Process” we mean how we collect, record, hold, use, share and ultimately dispose of your information.

You have r​ights relating to your personal information. Your rights here in Jersey are explained in the Data Protection (Jersey) Law 2018. They are also described below.

All data processing we undertake is carried out under the requirements of the Data Protection (Jersey) Law 2018.

Why we process your personal information

We process your information so that we can:

• collect any Social Security contributions
  
• assess and award benefits
  
• support you in the workplace
• make decisions which affect you
• respond effectively to your enquiries
• update you with new or changed services
• secure services on your behalf at your request such as training
• investigate complaints
• investigate possible fraudulent activity. This may include the comparison of 2 or more sets of data to spot inconsistencies leading to further investigation
  
• contact you regarding your claims or contributions or with related information you may find interesting or useful
• combine 2 or more sets of data to identify and contact you in relation to benefits or services you may be eligible for but not currently accessing
  
• manage safeguarding and public protection concerns
• investigate breaches of the Health and Safety Law (Health and Safety Inspectorate)
• update other Government departments and organisations, with relevant information about you. We will only share data if we have a legal basis to do so, or failing that we will seek your consent
  

We may check your information with other information we hold to ensure our records are accurate.​

Housing Advisory Service, Affordable Housing Gateway and Housing Control and Business Licensing work closely with us. They have their own privacy notices and use your information to:

• support you with your enquiries around housing and accommodation
• confirm your residential and employment status
• award and enforce appropriate business licenses and staffing permissions

It is important that you let us know of any changes in your circumstances, even if you think we may already know. This will allow us to make sure your record is up to date and  provide you with the right advice and service.

Most of our data processing happens within Government buildings but sometimes staff are required to work from off-site locations including their homes. In these settings, data security continues to be given the utmost priority.

Automated decision making

We build business rules into our computer systems, based on our laws. These help us process your information more efficiently.

Automated decision making is when a decision is made about you using a wholly automated process. We may use the information you provide to us and existing information we hold about you to make these automatic decisions.

Automated decision making may occur in decisions related to your eligibility for the following contributory benefits:

• Long Term Incapacity Allowance (LTIA)
• Short Term Incapacity Allowance (STIA)
• Parental allowance and parental grant
  
• Income Support Eligibility Calculator on gov.je​
  

It may also occur in the protection of your contribution record, such as with:

• Student Credits
• Home Responsibility Protection
  

The Data Protection Law allows you the right to insist that a decision made about you by wholly automated means is reviewed by a person. For more information, please contact us.

How we use information

Sometimes we may use your personal information to:

• develop policies and services, this may include surveys. Any reports or findings coming out of this kind of work will never contain information which can identify you personally
  
• improve the efficiency of our services
  
• review and plan for benefits and services
• help with audit and accounting
• develop learning and training
• improve communication and help prevent fraud and error
• provide statistical information which will help with our forward planning. This may have come from a survey we have sent you after you have accessed one of our services
  
• respond to Freedom of Information Requests but you will not be identified personally
  
• protect the public
• enable the maintenance and upgrade of our computer systems by external suppliers. When this occurs we make every effort to protect your information and where possible ensure that the data does not directly identify you

Types of personal information we process

Information about you that we may process incudes:

• personal details such as your name, address, date of birth and family members, place of birth, gender, nationality
  
• information about your life events, for example when you got married
• your contact details; telephone, address or email
• records of visits or contacts you’ve had with us 
• records of all Social Security contributions paid by you or by an employer on your behalf, along with details of your wages
• details of any claims and benefits including medical certificates, Income Support, Long Term Care and pension claims
• information from your employer, doctor (GP), carer or anyone else that helps us support you. This may include medical information
• your employment history, including dates and name of employer, if a permanent contract or not, and your contracted hours (full-time, part-time, zero hours
• any training or support you’ve received in finding work
• other special category (sensitive data)

If you have visited us in any of our buildings and locations it is possible that you have been recorded on our CCTV. These recordings are kept for 28 days before being deleted. They can only be accessed only by authorised personnel. CCTV is used for the prevention and detection of crime and in some areas to help us with customer queue management. 

When you speak to one of our advisors it is possible that the call will be recorded. These recordings are routinely kept for 14 days and may be used for training and quality purposes.

If you leave a message on our voicemail systems, your message will be kept until we are able to return your call or make a note of your message.

File notes of when and why you called may be taken for record keeping purposes. We will not pass on the content of your telephone calls, unless is it necessary for us to do so, either to: 

• fulfil your request for a service
• comply with a legal obligation
• where permitted under other legislation
  

Where we get your personal information from

We get your personal information from:

• you or your family when you complete our forms, speak to us on the phone, face to face or communicate with us by email
• information you provide to us by using our website
  
• surveys you have completed for us where you have provided personal information
  
• your employer
• other parts of the Government of Jersey, for example the Taxes office which sits within Revenue Jersey or organisations with whom we have data sharing agreements
  
• people or organisations who you have given consent to share information with us
• people or organisations where the Law allows them to share information about you with us

If you don’t tell us something we need to know, your personal records may not be accurate and this could affect your contributions or benefits and services provided.

Emails

We may use email to communicate with you. For security reasons we will keep any personal information to a minimum in any email we send to you.

If you email us we may keep a copy of your email address and the email as part of your record.
We suggest that you keep the amount of confidential information you send to us via email to a minimum. We advise you use our secure online services where possible.

We will not share your email address, or your email contents unless it's:

• to provide a service to you
• comply with a legal obligation
• permitted under other legislation
• permitted because you have given your consent
  

How your information is protected

Protecting your privacy and looking after your personal information is important to us. We work hard to make sure that we have the right policies, training and processes in place to protect our manual and electronic information systems from loss, corruption or misuse. Where necessary we use encryption, particularly if we are transferring information out of the department. Encryption means the information is made unreadable until it reaches its destination. 

We take every reasonable step to make sure that we keep your personal information safe in line with best practice, the Data Protection Law and any other relevant Laws.

Our staff:

• have a legal duty to keep your information confidential
• receive annual training in the Data Protection Law

We only hold your information for as long as it is needed. However at the current time information is kept indefinitely on some of our electronic systems. The time periods we keep your information for are listed in our retention schedules. 

Sharing your information

We sometimes need to share some of your information with other teams within the Government of Jersey or with external agencies.

For example, if you are an Income Support claimant and have a child, we will share your name address, Social Security number and that of your child with Children Young People, Education and Skills (CYPES) to help them administer the Jersey Premium scheme. If CYPES cannot locate your child on a Jersey school register, they will inform us so that we can make enquiries and update your claim if necessary.

We also share data with CYPES to help them identify young people who are not in education, employment or training (NEET) so that they can make contact with them to provide support.​

If you are in receipt of Income Support or Pension Plus we share limited information with GPs through the Health and Community Service (HCS) system to allow you to benefit from the reduced consultation charges under the Health Access Scheme. When your GP charges you for your GP visit, the reduced charge will be made automatically, the GP has no access to your Social Security or benefits record. You can opt out of this benefit by calling ESSH and your data will not be shared.

We routinely share data with Statistics Jersey for their use in developing statistical analysis to drive strategic decisions for Jersey. This includes personal data relating to manpower and contributions. For more information on how Statistics Jersey use your information visit About Statistics Jersey.

If you become employed by the Government of Jersey, The People Hub who are part of the Cabinet Office have restricted system access and are able to obtain your Social Security number, eligibility for work status and contributions liability. This data is transferred to the Government’s Connect People system, controlled by People and Corporate Services, and subsequently accessed by payroll staff to ensure you are paid appropriately.