The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) has warned the public to be on their guard against unlawful “robo calls” – automated marketing calls designed to sound as though the recipient is talking to a human.
The warning comes after the ICO fined two energy companies a total of £550,000 for making such calls. Home Improvement Marketing Ltd (HIM), based in Pembrokeshire, was fined £300,000 and issued with enforcement notice. Green Spark Energy Ltd (GSE), based in Durham, was fined £250,000 and also issued with an enforcement notice. Both firms used avatar software, which gave the call recipients the impression they were talking to ‘Jo, Helen or Ian’ from the UK – but were in fact scripted lines recorded by voice actors and played by call agents abroad.
The rules for making automated calls are set out in Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations 2003 (PECR) and are stricter than for making live calls. Automated marketing calls can only be made to people who have previously informed the caller that they consent to such communications being sent by or at the instigation of the caller. Consent must be freely given, specific and informed. The caller should also identify to the recipient which organisation they are from. The ICO has published Direct Marketing Guidance for organisations as well as advice to individuals about how to protect themselves and their loved ones from such calls.
The maximum fine for a breach of PECR is currently £500,000. When the new Data (Use and Access) Act 2025 comes fully into force, this will increase to UK GDPR levels i.e. 4% of gross annual turnover or £17.5Million (whichever is higher).
These and other developments will be covered in our forthcoming GDPR Update course.
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