ICO unveils direct marketing tool to keep activity legal

The Information Commissioner’s Office is doing its bit to ensure organisation keep on the right side of data laws with the launch of a free online tool to help them ensure their direct marketing activities are legit.

The regulator insists that using the direct marketing advice generator, organisations will get reliable compliance advice, tailored to their own direct marketing activities, “in minutes”.

The tool, which covers both the Privacy & Electronic Communication Regulations (PECR), and the UK GDPR, allows organisations to promote their products and services to both new and existing customers, as well as share their aims and ideals – and can assist in making sure they are contacting people who are happy to hear from them. Ultimately, saving them time and money and protecting their reputation.

Covering email, SMS, direct mail, social media, telemarketing and more, the regulator maintains the tool makes it quicker and easier for organisations to access the right advice for different types of direct marketing.

By answering a few simple questions, the tool will bring the relevant guidance together in one place. So organisations can spend less time figuring out which advice applies to their particular direct marketing activities, and more time getting on with running their business.

But just in case organisations do not believe the rules apply to them, the ICO has flagged up a few examples of what can happen to those who deliberately ignore the law.

Last year, it took action against Money Bubble and Breathe Services, both based in Greater Manchester. The companies were fined a total of £290,000 and issued with enforcement notices after an investigation found they had collectively made in excess of 4.5 million nuisance phone calls to people who had opted out of receiving marketing calls.

A fine of £150,000 was additionally issued to two companies, Quick Tax Claims and National Debt Advice, for sending in excess of 7.5 million spam text messages to people resulting in over 70,000 complaints – 93% of these stating there was no ‘opt out’ option.

During this investigation, it transpired that both companies had purchased personal information from third-party suppliers that did not obtain valid consent.

ICO head of business services Faye Spencer said: “Direct marketing can be a great asset to any organisation when it’s done correctly and lawfully. This new tool, coupled with our privacy notice generator launched last year, aims to make data protection compliance simple and stress-free for all organisations.

“We’d love for you to try the direct marketing advice generator for yourself, and fill in the feedback form when you’ve used it. We want to make sure all our products and services meet the needs different types of organisations, and your feedback is invaluable in helping us to do this.”