ICO orders Penny Appeal to stop sending spam texts
Melanie May | 5 March 2024 | News
Penny Appeal has been ordered by the ICO to stop sending unsolicited marketing texts to people without their consent, after it sent more than 460,000 over a 10-day period.
Penny Appeal, based in Wakefield, sent the texts to 52,000 people who had never provided their consent, or who had clearly opted out. The texts were sent between April and May 2022 to coincide with Ramadan, and encouraged people on a daily basis to donate to the charity’s appeals.
This resulted in 354 complaints to the Information Commissioner’s Office and the Mobile UK’s Spam Reporting Service. Complainants reported their requests to opt out were ignored and described the texts as “intrusive”, “unwanted,” and often received late at night.
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The ICO’s investigation found that the charity had created a new database where requests to opt out were not recorded and messages were sent to anyone who had interacted with the charity in the last five years.
It is not the first time Penny Appeal has sent unwanted texts. The regulator first engaged with the charity in 2020, after receiving complaints about a similar marketing campaign. While it committed to improving its compliance with direct marketing law, further complaints were received, and still under investigation, Penny Appeal sent more spam texts over Ramadan, which led to additional complaints.
The ICO has now issued an Enforcement Notice, ordering Penny Appeal to stop sending marketing communications without consent within 30 days.
In response, Penny Appeal commented:
“Penny Appeal remains committed to continuous improvement in seeking to foster the highest standards of governance.
“As part of this journey, we have conducted a full review of our data use and data compliance processes and procedures including ongoing cleansing of the data we hold.
“We remain committed to working closely with the ICO and our other statutory agencies in continuing to strengthen our charity in aid of the vulnerable communities we exist to serve.”
Reminder for charities
The regulator is reminding all charities that it is against the law to send marketing texts, calls, or emails without valid consent.
Andy Curry, Head of Investigations at the ICO, said:
“Penny Appeal inundated people with text messages, with no regard for their consent or their right to opt out. This is unacceptable and we will act decisively to protect the public from unsolicited marketing texts. Despite providing advice and guidance to improve this charity’s compliance we were left with no choice but to take enforcement action in order to protect the public.
“We are here to support charities in their missions to responsibly raise funds for good causes and help people in need. We also appreciate that small charities may need a helping hand when it comes to understanding the law. However, this is not an excuse for breaking it. All organisations sending direct marketing messages are responsible for ensuring they have valid consent to contact every recipient.”
Gerald Oppenheim, Chief Executive of the Fundraising Regulator, said:
“The Fundraising Regulator supports the ICO’s decision which echoes an investigation into the same issue that the Fundraising Regulator completed in 2022. While communicating with donors via text can be an effective tool for charities, it is vital that those charities abide by not only the law, but also the Code of Fundraising Practice – which stipulates that fundraising must be open, honest, legal, and respectful.”
The ICO’s advice for charities is as follows:
- Only email or text someone if they have specifically consented to receiving emails or texts – for example, by ticking an opt-in box.
- People cannot provide consent as a condition of subscribing to a service – consent must be freely given and fully informed.
- Offer an opt-out option (by reply or unsubscribe link) and act on this promptly.
- Keep a clear ‘do not contact’ list of anyone who opts out or unsubscribes from your communications, and screen against this list every time you send an email or text.
- The ICO enforces the Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations 2003 (PECR), which cover the rules for organisations wishing to make direct marketing calls, texts or emails.
Charities can visit the ICO website for further guidance and support on all aspects of data protection, including general recommendations for charities and bespoke advice for small organisations.
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About Melanie May
Melanie May is a journalist and copywriter specialising in writing both for and about the charity and marketing services sectors since 2001. She can be reached via thepurplepim.com.