It should usually only be a last resort and after you have taken proper advice. It not only might not achieve what you are hoping to achieve but it could make things worse. It is also worth remembering that if you speak to the media, you do not have control over what they do with your story and this could leave you open to potential backlash, or unwelcome media coverage. If you speak to the media, disclose your employer’s confidential information and your disclosure is not a protected disclosure (which it may well not be), then you may face a breach of confidence claim from your employer. It is therefore best to avoid media disclosures if at all possible. Raising whistleblowing concerns with the media is what is called a wider disclosure and there are several legal conditions you need to meet in order for such a disclosure to be protected- see our section on Disclosure in Other Cases (including to the Media) for more detail. There are only very limited occasions when speaking to the media will amount to a protected disclosure. ![]() I am considering going to the media with my concerns, which would involve disclosing my employer’s confidential information. Is this a good idea? If possible, you should obtain independent legal advice before making a disclosure in order to understand the chance that this defence will be available. See our webpage on protected disclosures for more detail or, if in doubt, give one of our advisers a call.Įven if you cannot show that you have made a protected disclosure, if you disclose your employer’s confidential information in order to report suspected wrongdoing then you may be able to rely on a common law public interest defence (see above). Both the information you disclose and the way in which you disclose it are relevant. Before raising concerns, it is very important to check whether it is likely that you will actually be making a protected disclosure. Examples of Breaches of Confidentiality Disclosing information to the media Improperly disposing of or closing a clients record Disclosing information saved. However, your employer may argue that your disclosure was not a protected disclosure and that you therefore breached their confidence. ![]() This means that if you can demonstrate that you have made a protected disclosure (in relation to the confidential information in question) you will not have breached your obligations of confidentiality. Terms in your contract which try to prevent you from making a protected disclosure are void. If my employer sues me for breach of confidence, will they win? ![]() I suspect that certain senior managers at work are committing wrongdoing but I will need to disclose some confidential information in order to blow the whistle.
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