A recent report explains that UK businesses are apparently taking some interesting steps to help with sales. The study conducted by StrongMail, a marketing and transactional email firm, looked at the information practices of nine hundred UK data protection and marketing professionals. The study listed some interesting results, which would be appalling to some civil liberty and consumer rights groups.
UK Businesses offering up more than simple customer information.(IMG:J.Anderson)
Companies in the US and the UK will often share customer details and information to a degree to help with sales and other direct marketing business. The collection and distribution of this information is controlled in the US, and there is a heavy push to control it more. Adding to this, is the resurgence of the need for consumer protection and security when it comes to storing and collecting personal or private information. (Personal in this case being almost everything a company does or could ask you to give them.)
The StrongMail report shows that out of the nine hundred data protection and marketing professionals they spoke to, many UK business are not adhering to some of the protections and consumer rights that you would normally expect. While not an expert on US and UK privacy law, I am quite familiar with the US side of things, and I have to argue that there are many similarities in the two. The study pointed out that UK businesses are willing to share religious affiliations, political activism or affiliations, ethnicity information, and credit card information.
However, while shady, it would be hard to press that it is illegal. The companies who are referenced in the StrongMail report had to have asked for the information in the first place from the various consumers they deal with. The problem is, that if they are collecting this information, they are doing a poor job apparently keeping it protected.
The report found that the loss or theft of private and confidential data is endemic amongst UK firms with almost two-thirds (sixty-one percent) of marketing professionals experiencing loss or theft of consumer information over the past two years. In ninety percent of cases, the loss or theft went unreported since they felt that they were either not required to, or were unsure whether they had to, report the incident to the affected customer. This information speaks to better notification laws, something that is needed in the US as well.
Paul Bates, email marketing expert and managing director of StrongMail UK, said, “Businesses have a moral, ethical obligation to keep private, personal customer data safe and secure. They should not be handing it out to third parties in the hope of making a fast buck. If they choose to do this, and then lose customer data, then they should at least be obliged to admit it.”
He’s right, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t something the consumer can do to help. Consumers should be careful of what information they release. Why would a company really need to know your sexual preference for example? Aside from direct marketing, there is no need. Besides, if this information is collected and placed with other information, like a customer profile for example, then there needs to be several methods used to protect it.
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