# Regional Institute of Fundraising group admits data protection error

- Link: https://fundraising.co.uk/2003/04/23/regional-institute-fundraising-group-admits-data-protection-error/
- Published: 2003-04-23T23:00:00+01:00
- Author: Howard Lake

One of the regional groups of the Institute of Fundraising has spotted that it has
been breaking data protection legislation in each of its e-mail announcements.
The
group – we’re not going to embarrass them – made the all-too-common mistake of sending
their news announcements via e-mail and including all recipients’ e-mail addresses
in the To: field. In this way, all recipients got to see everyone else’s e-mail 
address.

Of course, they should have used the Bcc: or blind copy field in which to place 
the recipients’ e-mail addresses.

It is alarming that in April 2003 fundraisers are still unaware of this basic method
of using e-mail. UK Fundraising’s Howard Lake has included this tip in many of his
online fundraising training courses since 1995.

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The next training course on using e-mail to fundraise takes place in London on 27
June 2003.

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