This statement outlines the approach we take in operating our business across a number of areas.

 

Ethics

Despite its many advances, the disparity of understanding, skills and abilities in using the Internet is growing.

We believe that by providing the insight, understanding and learning that our reports deliver, we are going a small way to levelling the playing field and helping those who are not technically proficient to have the same access to information as those who can navigate the web more easily.

We are also well aware of the subjective nature of ‘Googling’ people and have taken great care to objectively assess our findings against standards that are evidentially viable. We make adjustments to our reports to cater for protected characteristics under the Equality Act 2010 and also to consider baseline norms for demographics such as age and gender. We are advocates of privacy and consider our work very simply in these terms:

• We do not access restricted, private or locked accounts. If a person has elected to keep material private, we fully respect that.
• All of our data is drawn from publicly available sources
• By understanding what information is present, more informed and educated decisions can be made
• In the same manner as a Credit report collates and assesses disparate financial data, our Digital Footprint does the same for your online information: how well does your presumption fit with the reality?

We believe that by having an informed, intelligent and current understanding of a Digital Footprint will enable people to make better choices. These choices will lead to a safer online environment with greater transparency and accountability in the right places.

 

Values

We recognise the sensitivity of personal data and make business decisions which we believe balance our responsibility towards our clients and our staff with our public responsibility. Please take the time to read our Ethics Policy and Equality Policy found with the ‘About Us’ section of our website for more information on our values. If you believe that these statements are either inaccurate or haven’t been followed, please make contact with us.

 

Legal Responsibility

All of our products and services and their production methodology have been assessed by specialist technology lawyers and accredited as being fully compliant with all UK Legislation, Acts and Statutes. We have specifically undertaken an assessment of these processes against The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) (Regulation (EU) 2016/679) and are similarly satisfied that we are fully compliant with this legislation.

 

Open Source Information

Sometimes referred to as Open Source Intelligence (OSINT), Open Source Information is data from online sources that is publicly available. Whether the data is free or not, this information when linked to an individual is what makes up their Digital Footprint.

 

What we don’t do

We do not access, nor attempt to access any restricted, locked or private data. We fully respect the rights of individuals to privacy and should they elect to keep profiles or parts of profiles private then we will never attempt to circumvent this.

We do not provide products or services for use partially or wholly within any service that is regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) or to determine eligibility for consumer credit. We do not provide products or services for use partially or wholly within any service that is regulated by the Security Industry Authority (SIA) of which falls within the Private Security Act 2001.

We do not create Digital Footprints on or for anyone under the age of seventeen at this time without the express permission of their legal parent or guardian. Where, in the course of our searching we capture information that is directly attributable to the profile of a person under the age of 17 and where we do not have this consent, we will not include this within our range of reports and services.

 

The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)

GDPR compliance is an essential part of our operating process and we have an in-depth insight into the legality of our products and services and specifically how they engage with this Act. For full details of how we use and retain personal data please see our trading Terms and Conditions.

 

GDPR and Consented Searches

Creating Digital Footprints only for those people who have explicitly consented to this is one avenue that this legislation caters for. We believe that compliance with this best fits our business ethics, values and position. However, there are several other legitimate, legal routes where we can use our range of products via GDPR without a person’s explicit consent and we reserve the right to operate under other sections of the legislation as and when we can support other legitimate outcomes, such as within Law Enforcement or Courts and Tribunal hearings.