Guidance in relation to WhatsApp and other social media

Freedom of information request reference no: 01.FOI.24.037689

I note you seek access to the following information:

Is it possible to have sight of the updated guidance in respect of the use of WhatsApp and other social media applications that was referenced as being provided to all MPS officers and staff recently?

On the 7 May 2024, we discussed your request for information. You explained that you would like to establish what the MPS rules are when using WhatsApp and other forms of social media on corporate and non-corporate devices. In short, you would like to know what MPS employees are permitted to do and not to do on social media. You explained that you had seen the link below and sought access to the policy referred to in this link.

MOPAC | Use of WhatsApp by Met Police

Decision

I have today decided to disclose some of the requested information. Some data has been withheld as it is exempt from disclosure and therefore this response serves as a Refusal Notice under Section 17 of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (the Act) by virtue of the following exemptions:

• Section 17(1) - Refusal Notice
• Section 31(1)(a) - Law Enforcement
• Section 40(2)&(3A)(a) - Personal Information

Reason for decision

Section 31(1)(a) - Law Enforcement - Section 31(1)(a) of the Act provides that any information is exempt if its disclosure under the Act would, or would be likely to, prejudice the prevention or detection of crime.

I have claimed this exemption in that the release and publication of the contact details (i.e. email addresses and telephone numbers) to a number of MPS departments, would provide persons intent on disrupting the work of the MPS, with information that would assist them in this endeavour.

Disruption to the Work of MPS Employees and Partner Agencies - The release and publication of the contact details to a number of MPS departments, would provide persons intent on disrupting the work of these departments, with information that would assist them to do so. In this regard, a person with this intent would be likely to use this information to make inappropriate contact with members of staff working in these departments and/or send them vast quantities of unsolicited correspondence. This would tie up the resources of these members of staff and cause disruption to the work of the MPS, hindering the prevention and/or detection of crime.

When considering whether the release of information is in the public interest, I have to consider whether the public interest is in favour of releasing information into the public domain or whether there is sufficient reason to support withholding the requested information. Having considered your request, I accept that there is a public interest in transparency when any request is made for police information. The public interest favouring release must be balanced against any associated risk and/or prejudice that would be caused by disclosure. Having carefully considered this, I have found that that the public release and publication of the contact details to a number of MPS departments, would provide persons intent on disrupting the work of MPS, with information that would assist them in this endeavour. Given this and the fact that the removal of this information does not detract from the quality of the records being disclosed, I have found that the release of this information is not in the public interest. I have accordingly refused to release the information described above in response to your request for information.

Section 40(2)&(3) - Personal Information - Section 40(2)(a)(b) of the Act provides that any information to which a request for information relates, is exempt information if the first condition of Section 40(3A)(a) is satisfied. The first condition of Section 40(3A)(a) states that personal information is exempt if its disclosure would contravene any of the data protection principles. If the disclosure of the requested personal data would not contravene the data protection principles, the disclosure must also not contravene Sections 3A(b) and 3B of the Act.

There are six principles that are set out in Article 5(1)(a) of the General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR) that dictate when the processing of personal data is lawful. The first principle requires that any processing of personal data must be lawful, fair and transparent. Under Article 6(1)(f) of the GDPR, the disclosure of personal data is considered to be lawful if:

a. There is a legitimate interest in the disclosure of that personal data.
b. The disclosure of the personal data is necessary to meet that legitimate interest.
c. The disclosure would not cause unwarranted harm to the data subject.

Names of MPS Members of Staff - The requested documents contain the names of MPS employees holding the rank of Band A (including shadow band equivalents) and below. Having considered the legitimate interest test in respect of this personal data, I have found that:

a. Employees holding the rank of Band A and below are unlikely to expect their names to be published in response to this Freedom of Information Act request. Given their roles and level of responsibility within the MPS, I have not identified a legitimate interest that would be satisfied in disclosing their personal data in response to this request for information.

Disclosure

1. Intranet Article: WhatsApp rolled out to all Met phones - 31 October 2023
2. MPS Guidance: Using WhatsApp on Met devices
3. MPS Guidance: MPS Ethical Social Media and Online Communication Principles 2020
4. MPS FAQs: How to use MPS data and technology with confidence
5. MPS Factsheet: Information Code of Conduct and Use of MPS ICT Systems Policy – September 2023
6. MPS Policy: Use of Met ICT Systems Policy
7. MPS Guidance: Guidance: Instant Messaging Apps (including WhatsApp) on MPS Issued Devices

Please note that documents 1-5 and 7 have been disclosed in full with the exception of limited personal data in document 4 and email addresses and telephone numbers in document 5. I have only provided the sections of document 6 that are relevant to your request for information, owing to the length of this document. As I have removed personal data, email addresses and telephone numbers from the disclosed records.

POINT OF NOTE - The MPS social media policy is currently under review. A revised policy will be published later this year.