North Yorkshire Police don't track home visits in relation to social media posts | Harrogate Informer
North Yorkshire Police refused a Freedom of Information request regarding data on social media-related police visits and arrests, citing that retrieval costs exceed legal limits. The force argued their IT systems lack the capability to easily extract this specific information, requiring manual reviews of thousands of reports that would surpass the allowable time and cost thresholds for compliance. This refusal highlights significant shortcomings in how law enforcement agencies manage and structure their digital records. By admitting that relevant data exists but is buried outside easily accessible fields, the incident raises serious questions about the robustness of their IT investments and their preparedness for transparency. It suggests a systemic failure to maintain data in formats that allow for efficient public accountability, potentially hindering oversight of their engagement with online activities. The situation is particularly relevant to the open data community because it exemplifies the gap between holding data and making it usable. True open data requires information to be structured for easy access and reuse, rather than being trapped in proprietary or poorly indexed systems. This case underscores the urgent need for standardized, machine-readable recording practices in public services to ensure that freedom of information laws can be meaningfully upheld without excessive burden on both citizens and authorities.
Source: harrogate-news.co.ukPublished on 2025-05-04
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