Part 6: Enforcement Section 173: Alteration etc of personal data to prevent disclosure to data subject
This section criminalises the alteration of personal data to prevent disclosure following the exercise of a subject access right. The relevant subject access rights are set out in subsection (2).
	This offence is modelled on the offence in section 77 of the 2000 Act which is committed when somebody alters records to frustrate a request for information made under that Act. Unlike the offence in section 77 of that Act which applies only to public authorities, subsection (4) makes it clear that this offence can be committed by any data controller.
	Subsection (5) provides for defences for this offences where the defendant can prove that the alteration of the data would have occurred even if the subject access request had not been made, or that the defendant reasonably believed that the requester was not entitled to the information. As worded, the section places a legal burden on the defendant to prove the relevant defences on the balance of probabilities.