Commentary Section 4
29.The offences of unlawful disclosure created by section 3 can in principle be committed by a “body corporate” (e.g. a company, or the BBC, which is a corporation by virtue of its Royal Charter). For example, company literature might reveal such information. By virtue of section 4(1), where such a body commits an offence under section 3, an officer of that body can personally be convicted of a criminal offence alongside the company, if it is shown that the body committed the offence with the consent or connivance of the officer, or that the commission of the offence was attributable to any neglect on his part. Thus, if an officer, for example, neglects to make sure that staff are aware of the need to maintain the confidentiality of social security information, or neglects to take steps to control movements of information, with the result that there is a release of such information, he may face prosecution. An individual convicted under this provision is liable to the same punishments as are set out in section 3(7).
30.The aim of subsections (2) and (3) is to ensure that this provision is apt to apply to many forms of corporate organisation. In particular, subsection (3) gives a broad definition of an “officer”, which means a director, member of the committee of management, chief executive, manager, secretary or other similar officer of the body. It also encompasses a person purporting to act in any such capacity, so a person who (for example) in fact gives orders in a company and is part of its management team might not escape liability by simply saying that technically (e.g. because of the terms of his job description) he does not fall into one of the categories of person mentioned.