Data protection laws in the UK: any ideas? Thread poster: Jason Willis-Lee
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Hi,
I recently received a group email from a regular customer based in the UK inviting suppliers to issue latest invoices for work from December. I noticed that instead of using the BCC option (blind copy) all the email addressees were perfectly visible, effectively disclosing competitor's emails to each other. I assume this was deliberate and designed to put a brake on any January price hikes (don't even think of raising your prices, look how may suppliers we have to choose from!)... See more Hi,
I recently received a group email from a regular customer based in the UK inviting suppliers to issue latest invoices for work from December. I noticed that instead of using the BCC option (blind copy) all the email addressees were perfectly visible, effectively disclosing competitor's emails to each other. I assume this was deliberate and designed to put a brake on any January price hikes (don't even think of raising your prices, look how may suppliers we have to choose from!)
In Spain, where I am based, I understand this breaches data protection laws and one would incur a hefty fine. Does anyone have any ideas on how this action would be viewed in the UK?
Also, why assume that suppliers only increase prices in January? Having seen this I would be inclined to raise prices at any other moment in time.
Thanks,
Jason. ▲ Collapse
| | | | | Why assume anything? | Jan 14, 2011 |
Jason Willis-Lee wrote:
I assume this was deliberate and designed to put a brake on any January price hikes (don't even think of raising your prices, look how may suppliers we have to choose from!)
If I were the agency, I would be more worried that you would all start to email each other to find out who charged the highest rate, with the others then attempting to increase their rates accordingly. Indeed, I have always assumed this, along with general discretion, is why individual freelancers tend to be kept in the dark about who else works for an agency.
Which just goes to show that assumptions can vary wildly and are perhaps ultimately little help
Does anyone have any ideas on how this action would be viewed in the UK?
Off the top of my head, no, but I'd imagine that any freelancer reporting an agency to the authorities for such a trivial (IMHO) infringement (if infringement it is) would be unlikely to be offered too much work from that agency again. So from the agency's perspective, "dimly" would be my answer.
Anyway, I would be more inclined to view the action as a potentially useful lapse than a deliberate action to your disadvantage. Indeed, between you and me, I have an email folder for all such emails where contact details for other freelancers have been disclosed, because I actually think it's info that could potentially be useful one day.
| | | | | Competition Law comes to mind... | Jan 14, 2011 |
IMHO:
Firstly, I agree fully with Charlie Bavington, secondly, to my mind if any law has been trespassed it would more likely be competition law than data protection law. But even the former would require 'cartel sensitive' price information to have been disclosed.
Have a great weekend!
Best wishes
Heike
| | | | Sheila Wilson 
Spain
Local time: 18:55
Member (2007)
English
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| "Oops", "Damn", "F***" | Jan 14, 2011 |
Depending on the individual(s) concerned, I would think that this must have been the agency's reaction when they realised what they had done.
I am quite sure they have more to lose from this than they could ever hope to gain.
I would imagine that it could be considered as an invasion of privacy and I certainly haven't been overjoyed on the two occasions when my address has been used this way. I wasn't worried about the agency having done it deliberately but I did wonder... See more Depending on the individual(s) concerned, I would think that this must have been the agency's reaction when they realised what they had done.
I am quite sure they have more to lose from this than they could ever hope to gain.
I would imagine that it could be considered as an invasion of privacy and I certainly haven't been overjoyed on the two occasions when my address has been used this way. I wasn't worried about the agency having done it deliberately but I did wonder how much extra spam I would receive as some people seem to include every address they can find on circulation lists. There are too many people who think that sending jokes and silly pictures to all and sundry is a good idea. ▲ Collapse
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Neil Coffey
United Kingdom
Local time: 18:55
French to English
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| Agree with Sheila and others | Jan 14, 2011 |
It sounds like a genuine mistake on the part of a slightly rushed or ignorant secretary and I would be cautious about assuming any malice.
I suppose an appropriate form of action would be for them to e-mail the people on the list again (ideally with BCC this time...) reminding them not to "Reply to All" when they send their invoices.
As for the Data Protection Act, I guess if you could really be bothered to pursue it, you might just persude the Information Commissioner ... See more It sounds like a genuine mistake on the part of a slightly rushed or ignorant secretary and I would be cautious about assuming any malice.
I suppose an appropriate form of action would be for them to e-mail the people on the list again (ideally with BCC this time...) reminding them not to "Reply to All" when they send their invoices.
As for the Data Protection Act, I guess if you could really be bothered to pursue it, you might just persude the Information Commissioner to give them a severe warning that They Should Be More Careful In Future. I'm sure that would also result in your "data" being removed from their system... ▲ Collapse
| | | | | Also think it was a mistake/oversight | Jan 15, 2011 |
It's happened before.
I usually send a nice LinkedIn invitation to those newly discovered colleagues - you never know when they'll come in handy, be it for discovering if the client is playing you against one another or, if it's a client whose judgment you trust, you suddenly have a list of already vetoed translators to work with should the need arise (private client suddenly needs a one-off translation in another language, you need an editor for a particularly tricky project, etc.... See more It's happened before.
I usually send a nice LinkedIn invitation to those newly discovered colleagues - you never know when they'll come in handy, be it for discovering if the client is playing you against one another or, if it's a client whose judgment you trust, you suddenly have a list of already vetoed translators to work with should the need arise (private client suddenly needs a one-off translation in another language, you need an editor for a particularly tricky project, etc.).
So enjoy the late X-mas gift and use it to your advantage! ▲ Collapse
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