Conservative Party fined one-third of a luxury food hamper by ICO for nuisance email campaign

Britain’s ruling Conservative Party is facing a £10,000 fine from the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) for dispatching marketing emails to unwilling recipients, 51 of whom complained to the regulator. The ICO issued the financial penalty today for breaching Regulation 22 of the Privacy and Electronic Communications …

[WolfFan]

So… why haven’t you got rid of Trump Mini yet?

[Anonymous Coward]

There's nothing better to replace him with.

[Adrian 4]

Then replace him with nothing. It would be a big improvement.

[ICL1900-G3]

Belgium

See Belgium for details. Worked fine for them.

[ShadowSystems]

Can't provide proof?

If you can't provide the proof that every single address properly opted-in to be marketed to, then you should be *seriously* fined to make sure you never do it again. Not a mere 10K slap on the wrist, unless that's *per email*. And no you may not simply use tax payer monies to pay off the fine, you should be personally financially & criminally liable.

*Sigh*

Another fantasy about kicking the idiots in the head. I should increase my dried frog pills...

[Pascal Monett]

Re: Can't provide proof?

Absolutely.

Since when has the absence of records allowed anyone to escape a fine ?

I'm sorry Judge, I have no records of having broken into that house.

Oh ? Fine then, you'll just pay £100.

As usual, one rule for the plebs, another for the people with influence.

[Sykowasp]

I found Conservative party propaganda emails in my inbox during the same time period. I certainly never signed up for any such thing, I never would.

I presume it's the same situation, they clearly obtained a set of email addresses from somewhere and used them improperly.

[TheFifth]

Yup me too. There is no way in heaven or hell I'd sign up for Tory propaganda, so they've obviously purchased a list from somewhere. There's no other way that they could have got hold of my email address.

Interestingly, it's an email address I only use for 'official' things like the NHS, doctors, dentist, DVLA, passport etc. I have a specific email address that I use to sign up for random stuff online and that gets a tonne of stuff I never signed up for. The email address they sent to gets very few messages from mailing lists, so it's interesting it arrived at that one.

I'm glad others complained. I was going to, but was too busy at the time and then completely forgot. Just searched my inbox and I still have the message saved as I did plan to report it.

[Anonymous Coward]

Piss up.... brewery...

They can't even organise a mass mailing spam campaign, yes my fellow countrymen elected them to not only run the country, but also manage the most significant step-change in the countries international relationships in centuries...... I shake my head in sad disbelief.

[wolfetone]

95 complaints out of 23 million emails

This is the most depressing part of the whole thing.

[Yet Another Anonymous coward]

Re: 95 complaints out of 23 million emails

Spam filters work !

[Ken Moorhouse]

"the relevant employee left shortly afterwards and there are no available records."

Ah, so that's ok then.

[Tom Servo]

Re: "the relevant employee left shortly afterwards and there are no available records."

Sounds a bit of a Stalinesque solution - "No man, no problem"

[Big Softie]

Re: "the relevant employee left shortly afterwards and there are no available records."

Mistakes were made...lessons will be learned...

<yawn>

[Fruit and Nutcase]

Universal Credit

If the glorious leader is having problems making ends meet, having to accept food parcels and help with childcare costs, perhaps he could apply to Universal Credit?

https://www.gov.uk/apply-universal-credit

and he's fathered so many children that he's lost count, perhaps a visit to the local vasectomy clinic would also help

[DJV]

Re: a visit to the local vasectomy clinic

...where he will hopefully be seen by someone who can't tell the difference between the vas deferens and the vocal chords...

[JDPower666]

Re: a visit to the local vasectomy clinic

They're just in front of the hole he talks out of, right? The vas deferens that is, not the vocal chords.

[Anonymous Coward]

Grant Shapps

You'd have thought Grant Shapps/Michael Green/Sebastian Fox would have been able to advise them on how to run a spam campaign:

https://news.sky.com/story/shapps-sold-get-rich-quick-guide-while-mp-10367656

[Howard Sway]

weekly cost of three daily meals for Mr Johnson and Miss Symonds, including Uber minicab : £840

A daily food bill of £60 each. For the man who pretends to rail against the "metropolitan elite".

You've gotta be really dumb to keep believing in that schtick as more and more money grubbing comes to light.

[Claverhouse]

The Common Man

Most ordinary people who eat £27,000 of food for two people in 8 months will wonder what all the fuss is about.

[big_D]

Sorry, what?

For its part, the party said it had recently changed its bulk email provider and the "transfer of records had not been effected properly".

How can the records be transferred properly? You need proof of opt-in for each record you transfer, you can't just move them to a new service. If they don't have the proof of doubt-opt-in, the service will probably suspend their account... :-S

[ThatOne]

Re: Sorry, what?

> How can the records be transferred properly?

Sold. "Here, 500000 validated addresses, we'll make you a special price."

[ThatOne]

Government vs. Spam

And that my friends is why it is unlikely any government will do anything about spam, nuisance calls and all those things which make our life unpleasant: They actually don't see the problem. At all. It doesn't affect them, so what's the fuss?

In consequence, much like any mindless beast, you have to guide them with carrot and stick, explain to them that spamming and cold calling is a no-no, that you people really don't like it, and that any politician hoping to be (re)elected has to be particularly active to prevent it. And "active" as in doing actual things, not just emitting cheap and non-binding sound bytes.