Calls for 'The Right to be Forgotten' (criminal records)
source: Russell Webster
first published: 5 January 2026
Image Credit: Pexels/Duda at www.pexels.com
A new (December 2025) briefing from Unlock, the charity which supports and advocates for people with criminal records to be able to move on positively in their lives, examines how the digital age has undermined the promise of the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (ROA) and sets out reforms needed to protect the right to move on from a criminal record.
The briefing, entitled the Right to be Forgotten, shows how Employers, education providers and others can easily discover information online that they would not lawfully receive via a Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check.
The Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (ROA) was designed for an analogue world in which criminal record information was accessed only through formal channels and with the individual’s knowledge and consent. Today, online news archives, search engines, social media and rogue “naming and shaming” sites mean that criminal records – including spent convictions – can remain searchable indefinitely.
Employers, education providers and others can easily discover information online that they would not lawfully receive via a Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check. Indeed many people routinely Google the name of a new work colleague out of idle curiosity. For people with a criminal conviction, the digital world can make it almost impossible to leave behind earlier mistakes.
The report explains the DBS framework (basic, standard and enhanced checks) and shows that, in principle, how this system ought to balance safeguarding with rehabilitation. In practice, however, the availability of online information bypasses DBS safeguards, giving employers uncontrolled access to partial and often inaccurate criminal record data.
Many routinely conduct online searches – including via search engines, social media and AI tools – without a lawful basis or clear policy on how to handle any criminal record information they find. This creates serious risks of unlawful data processing under UK GDPR and systemic discrimination.
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