The Information Commissioner’s Office has issued a warning to organisations to use alternatives to the BCC email function when sending emails containing sensitive personal information, following a catalogue of blunders at both private and public sector organisations.
The warning comes as the ICO publishes new guidance to help organisations understand the law and good practice around protecting personal information when sending bulk emails.
According to ICO data, failure to use BCC correctly is consistently within the top 10 non-cyber breaches, with nearly a thousand reported since 2019.
The education sector is the biggest offender for BCC breaches, with health in second, then local government, but retail and the charity sector have also been fingered, making up the top five.
ICO director of regulatory cyber Mihaela Jembei said: “Failure to use BCC correctly in emails is one of the top data breaches reported to us every year – and these breaches can cause real harm, especially where sensitive personal information is involved.
“While BCC can be a useful function, it’s not enough on its own to properly protect people’s personal information. We’re asking organisations to assess the nature of the information and the potential security risks when deciding on the best method to communicate with staff or customers.
“If organisations are sending any sensitive personal information electronically, they should use alternatives to BCC, such as bulk email services, mail merge, or secure data transfer services.”
Jembei said the new guidance is part of the ICO’s commitment to help organisations get email security right. However, where he maintained that when it sees negligent behaviour that puts people at risk of harm, the regulator will not hesitate to use the full suite of enforcement tools available.
The critical importance of using appropriate methods to send bulk communications is emphasised in recent ICO enforcement action.
Earlier this month, the ICO reprimanded two Northern Irish organisations for disclosing people’s information inappropriately via email.
And, in March, the ICO issued a reprimand to NHS Highland for a “serious breach of trust” after a data breach involving those likely to be accessing HIV services. However, none of the organisations was hit by a monetary penalty.
The ICO is keen to point out that, under data protection law, organisations must have appropriate technical and organisational measures in place to ensure personal information is kept safe and not inappropriately disclosed to others.
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