Dear Ms Thrope

APPLICATION UNDER THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA)

I refer to your email dated 17 October, requesting the following information under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA):

“Please forward to me the list of PC terminals at Cotton House, Glasgow, which are connected to the internet.

This should be in whatever format is used internally by HMRC to identify individual terminals, in order that an individual terminal could be selected from the list.”

Rather than make such a wide ranging request it would be better if you described more fully the sort of information you are hoping to find on the logs; which will enable us to focus our search so that we can comply with your request.

By way of background, all HMRC network connected desktop devices have the capability to access the internet, but the authority to access the internet is attached to an individual user's profile; therefore, one person may have the authority to use the internet, while another who may log on to the same device, does not, because the authority to access the web is given at the user level not the device level.

If we gave you the address of one terminal it may be possible, within the fees limit allowed by the Act, to look at that individual terminal to ascertain who used it and then interrogate it to see what each user had looked at but it is by no means certain that we would be able to pass on all the details to you. For example if access related to work in connection with identifiable customers or research in anticipation of enquiry work it may be covered by exemptions in the Act. But it is equally possible that, if no one who has internet access allocated as part of their profile had used the machine, there would be no record of any access.

If you are not happy with this reply you may request a review by writing to HMRC FOI Team, Room 4/52, 100 Parliament Street London SWIA 2BQ. You must request a review within 2 months of the date of this letter. It would assist our review if you set out which aspects of the reply concern you and why you are dissatisfied.

If you are not content with the outcome of the internal review, you have the right to apply directly to the Information Commissioner for a decision. Generally, the Information Commissioner cannot make a decision unless you have exhausted the complaints procedure provided by HMRC. The Information Commissioner can be contacted at:

Information Commissioner's Office

Wycliffe House

Water Lane

Wilmslow

Cheshire

SK9 5AF

If you have any queries about this letter, please contact me. Please remember to quote the reference number above on any future communications.

Yours sincerely

Eileen Tully

HM Revenue and Customs

Information Management Services

Freedom of Information Manager