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Google sued for using NHS data of 1.6 million Britons ‘without their knowledge or without their consent’ | Science & Technology News


Google is being sued over its use of confidential medical records of 1.6 million individuals in the UK.

The company’s artificial intelligence arm, DeepMind, received the data in 2015 from the Royal Free NHS Trust in London for the purpose of testing a smartphone app called Streams.

The lawsuit is being brought by Andrew Prismall in a representation case in the Supreme Court. It alleges that Google and DeepMind “collected and used a substantial number of confidential medical records without the patient’s knowledge or consent”.

Why does Google have access to patient records?

Google received data from 1.6 million patients, some of whom simply attended A&E within the past five years, to test a smartphone app that could detect kidney injuries. acute.

The smartphone app – designed to tackle 25% of preventable deaths from acute kidney injury if they are caught early enough – was later used by the Royal Free NHS Trust on a discount basis.

Sky News previously revealed that Royal Free shared patient data on “inappropriate legal grounds” under a leaked letter from the most senior data protection advisor for the NHS.

The agreement was then made was found to be illegal by the UK’s privacy watchdog decided not to penalize Royal Free, explaining that due to a lack of guidance for this area.

At the time of the Information Commissioner’s Office announcement, DeepMind emphasized that “their findings were about Royal Free, [but] We also need to reflect on our own actions.”

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Since 2017: Sky News has seen evidence that NHS trusts may have compromised patient data by partnering with Google

What impact will the High Court case have?

The representative action comes as the UK government is looking for ways for the private sector to use NHS data to jointly improve patient care and the country’s burgeoning AI sector.

Mr Prismall said: “It is my hope that this case can achieve a fair and closed outcome for the many patients whose confidential records – without the patient’s knowledge – were obtained by these big tech companies. and use.”

Ben Lasserson, partner at Mishcon de Reya, the law firm representing Mr Prismall, said the statement was “particularly important”.

He added: “It will provide some much-needed clarity on the proper parameters by which tech companies may be allowed to access and use personal health information.

A Google spokesperson did not immediately respond to Sky News’ request for comment.

The Royal Free NHS Trust is not a party to the claim.

The action is being sponsored by Litigation Capital Management Limited, an asset management firm focused on funding legal claims.

Last year, the Supreme Court blocked a similar legal action against Google claims it has secretly tracked millions of iPhone users’ browsing activities while telling them not to.

That claim was unsuccessful because the claimant could not prove that the group he was representing “suffered any material damage or suffering”.

Mr. Prismall’s claim that Google’s use of confidential patient medical records is illegal because the patient is neither informed nor asked about it, will pose another challenge to the company. .



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