** Reply to note from Clementine Amawo <[log in to unmask]> Tue, 2 Nov 2004 15:51:39 +0000
Let us see if I can give you a real muddle to fall in?
There are two issues to consider here.
a. That addresses may have been collected (by your individual
employees) by lawful means and for lawful communications.
b. People may refuse to receive yet another piece of unwanted email,
however, you must not damage the working relationship your employees may
have with those persons. (ie. if they say what do you hold on, or remove me
from your database etc) what do you do then?
I would not send the email with the newsletter thingie first time round. I would
emaill them though with what I intended to do and if they do not object I would
go through with it. [NB. I believe, and others will put me right on this, that the
latest piece of legislation said that you must have express permission to put
people in such a database/distribution list ... in which case no reply is not
explicit opt in].
> Can you help?
> The PR dept want to send out an electronic newspaper (i.e. via email) to
> our key stakeholders and councillors etc. The email will include (amongst
> other articles), the following -
>
> "Welcome to [Company Name] email bulletin service. We have you listed as
> someone who may be interested in the work [Company Name] is doing in [area]
> and from time to time we will be sending out bulletin updates. [Company
> Name] is a...
> ....If you know someone who would like to receive the bulletin, or would
> like your name removed from our database, please reply to this email".
* And you will have to check all emails (including all junk that will come back to
your organisation).
* You will need to process the data of those who have opted out so in the long
term so you don't accidentally put them back in.
* You must not take at face value any email for more persons to receive
your newsletter send to you by another recipient. You would have to contact
each one individually.
>
> I have informed PR that they cannot do this as they do not have the consent
> or permission of those they want to send it to and the intended recipients
> have not been informed of or signed up the fact that they will be receiving
> this newsletter. What they have done is collected email address over time
> of all our stakeholders, councillors and other such customers and then
> decided that it would be a great marketing tool to put together this
> electronic newsletter and blitz them.
* The chances are the PR dept will ignore you and do what it is going to do
anyway.
>
> Is there any way round this? Shouldn t they email each individual
> separately (seeing as email addresses are now considered to be personal
> data) and inform about the newsletter and include an opt in (or is it opt
> out) clause?
* If you can get away with opt-out you will be doing well.
>
> Has anyone have a robust sturdy opt in opt out statement I could use.
The statement should be as simple as possible. There is nothing much to
say really. [The case has to be made by the rest of the message].
>
> Or have I got it all wrong?
No you have not ... it is that you are finding out that some people manage to
see data protection as the biggest obstacle they have in what otherwise
would have been a grand job they would have been doing.
Of course in this game you are the messenger ... and you know what happens
to the messenger ... Say what is to be said and give them enough rope to - if
they want - hung themselves.
Charles
--
Charles Christacopoulos, Management Information Officer,
Planning & Information, University of Dundee, Dundee, DD1 4HN,
Scotland, United Kingdom. Tel: 44(0)1382-344891. Fax: 44(0)1382-348845.
http://www.somis.dundee.ac.uk/ ::egothor http://www.egothor.org/
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