Spam emails

Could GDPR mean the end of spam emails?

9 October 2017
Get in touch

Share on social..

If you do not stay on top of your emails, your inbox can very quickly become full of largely unwanted messages. We all receive too many emails, the majority of which are marketing messages we are simply not interested in. When we feel overwhelmed by the sheer number of them, we call them spam. But is this the correct term?

What is spam?

The OED definition of spam is “Irrelevant or unsolicited messages sent over the Internet, typically to a large number of users, for the purposes of advertising, phishing, spreading malware, etc.” This means the term ‘spam’ does not include the marketing emails – however annoying you find them – which you have given consent to receive, even if you have forgotten that you have done so.

Marketing emails

Under the current Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations (PECR), which sit alongside the Data Protection Act, there are differing rules regarding communication with B2B and B2C audiences.

  • With B2B – limited companies, PLCs, LLPs etc, but not sole traders – companies are entitled to send marketing emails without requiring consent. However, if someone opts out by unsubscribing, the company must act on this.
  • With B2C – includes sole traders, employees of sole traders as well as individuals – a soft opt-in in the absence of consent, which basically means if someone buys from your company or expresses interest, for example by requesting a catalogue, you can market relevant goods and services to them.

Under GDPR the standard of consent is much tighter, but for the alternatives provided by PECR things are not necessarily going to change hugely. New ePrivacy legislation is due to come in with GDPR to replace PECR, but that is unlikely to change the rules around the soft opt-in and corporate subscribers.

Subscribing and unsubscribing

The biggest impact we will see after GDPR will be with the ‘subscribe’ tick boxes. Companies will no longer be allowed to add pre-ticked boxes, which means consumers will not be fooled into giving their consent for companies to sell their data to third parties.

There will be much tighter regulation around consent which will have to be unambiguous and freely given. The onus will be on businesses to prove they have been granted clear consent.

If you unsubscribe from a mailing list, then even though the company will still have your details, they will not be allowed to contact you. This year, the airline Flybe was fined £70,000 for deliberately contacting people who had unsubscribed from their mailing list. Under GDPR, the fines will potentially be considerably higher which should prevent this happening again.

Spam emails

There are many maverick marketing companies that are currently using loopholes in the law to send messages you have not consented to, and these emails can be classified as spam. Parent companies create new subsidiaries which spring up overnight and disappear just as quickly. GDPR will target the parent companies and all their subsidiaries, making it easier to prosecute them, and the fines will be huge. This means that, in theory, on the day after GDPR comes into effect, the slate will be wiped clean and everyone will have to re-give their consent.

Unfortunately, there are companies that operate outside of the law and are therefore unlikely to stop sending us so much spam and will be more difficult to stop. These produce the automated spam messages none of us want and most of us loathe, e.g. the ones that are trying to sell viagra. Many of these can be diverted with a decent spam filter.

Good news for the private individual

GDPR and the new UK Data Protection Bill will be great for us as individuals. However, they will make things more difficult for companies to market their products and services. Contact us if you would like to know more about GDPR compliance. 

 

What our customers say

Lumina Technologies have taken the time to understand the requirements of our business and work as our strategic IT partner, enabling us to concentrate on delivering a high quality service to our clients and focus on our growth strategy. They have delivered a 100% cloud solution to our business with no underlying infrastructure costs or maintenance, which gives us scalability for our planned growth. It also means our business critical applications and data are securely accessible from virtually all our user devices. Lumina’s professional approach and strategic expertise is highly valued and their management of our IT – based on their in-depth knowledge, leaves us confident that our systems are available 24×7.

Luke Harrison
Keidan Harrison LLP

Lumina have supported us so well through the difficult circumstances of 2020.  They worked extremely hard to ensure we were able to work remotely and continue to operate our business successfully. The support team are very friendly and knowledgeable, and have excellent response times.

The team have also enhanced our cyber security which is so important in the legal sector, and they continue to provide high quality advice to help us move forward with our IT goals.

Robin Illingworth
Managing Partner, Adams & Remers LLP

The quality of IT Support provided by Lumina Technology is of the highest standard and is complemented by effective client liaison with impressive response times. Trap Oil Group plc has no hesitation in recommending Lumina as a dedicated and specialist group of IT professionals.

Martin David
Technical Director, Trap Oil Group plc

Richard and his team are a real inspiration to anyone who meets them and I have watched Lumina’s growth over the last few years with interest and admiration. Richard has been an amazing supporter of the Hospice of St Francis, being a Gold member of the Corporate Partner Network for almost two years. He takes an active interest in the community and is passionate about his company and his town: nothing is too much trouble, he is always willing to help, to give up his time and to provide business advice when asked. Lumina is an inspiration to any company wanting to set up business in Hertfordshire.

Carolyn Addison
Corporate Fundraising Manager, The Hospice of St Francis

Lumina Technologies Prism Hosted Desktop has allowed our business to centralise our global corporate data, allowing much faster access for all our staff – regardless of their location. We have also been able to simplify and reduce our infrastructure and management overhead. With the new Prism Hosted Desktop solution all staff now have simple and secure access to corporate data using any device they choose. Prism Hosted Desktop has increased the productivity of our staff and given us a single, consistent and familiar experience for all users from any device, in any location, 24/7.

Katherine Roe
Chief Executive Officer, Wentworth Resources PLC

The commercially sensitive and regulated nature of Lambert Energy Advisory’s business requires an IT provider able to maintain the highest levels of integrity and confidentiality, Lumina Technologies has consistently been unimpeachable in this regard over the nine years we have employed them.

Patrick Agar
Lambert Energy Advisory

It has been a great pleasure working with Lumina Technologies over the past two years. They have fully committed to being involved in the local community with volunteering and with professional advice and commitment, helping many local charities along the way. As a growing company it proves that being involved in the local community is helping them attract and retain a talented workforce and I look forward to working with them well into the future.

Cindy Withey
Connect Dacorum

Hawkstone Management Services Ltd is a small company for which IT Outsourcing is realistically the only viable option. Lumina Technologies have successfully performed this role for over fifteen years. They also provide innovative solutions to keep pace with technological progress. I would have no hesitation in recommending Lumina to similar sized businesses.

Stephen Pembury
Hawkstone Management Services Ltd

Charles Douglas Solicitors LLP have been using Lumina Technologies for a number of years now and continue to be impressed by the technical know-how and contemporary knowledge of their senior management, who provide a timely, efficient and friendly service. Whether it is a small issue with one computer, or a strategic IT decision, they maintain a current knowledge of available technologies. Lumina are always at the other end of the phone to help resolve issues and minimise business interference. The technical knowledge of Richard and his senior team means that there has not been a problem that they can’t solve to date. I am sure we will continue to use them in the years to come.

Charles Douglas
Managing Partner, Charles Douglas Solicitors LLP

The team at Lumina Technologies have made the Amoun Travel & Tours office IT transition seamless and problem free. The office set-up has been vastly improved and the IT Support services are flawless. No issue goes unresolved, which is extremely reassuring.

Adam Helmy
Amoun Travel & Tours Ltd

Lumina Technologies has been Salamander Energy plc’s IT provider since start-up in 2005 and has supported us in London during our expansion across operational offices in SE Asia. Their professional approach, strategic advice and close co-operation have been essential in making this a success.

John Bell
Group Technical Director, Salamander Energy plc

Richard and his team at Lumina have provided Perrett Laver Limited with high quality strategic and practical IT Services for over ten years. During this period, Perrett Laver has grown from 10+ colleagues based in London to nearly 100 colleagues located in six offices across the Americas, EMEA and Asia-Pacific. Richard and the Lumina team have not just been responsive to our ‘everyday’ IT needs, but have proactively sought to work with us on developing an infrastructure suitable for the type of operation we are today, and are planning to be months and years down the line. I would not hesitate to recommend Richard, especially for small to medium size business with growth in mind.

Clementine McKinley
COO, Perrett Laver Limited

Society Limited has been supported by Lumina Technologies since our earliest start-up phase. From large logistical challenges like an office move, through to smaller fiddly issues like fixing a faulty e-template, we know we can count on their support and advice. They’ve also been able to engage with us strategically on the challenge of scaling-up our infrastructure as the firm continues to grow and evolve. We always feel confident going to Lumina with a problem, since we know they genuinely care about sorting things out and helping us to get on with our core business.

Simon Lucas
Managing Director, Society Limited

The Vita Group HQ staff have worked with Richard McBarnet and Lumina Technologies for over 9 years, with Lumina providing all our PC, server, phone, and software support. The services have included C-level executives based in London, Manchester, the US, as well as supporting home office IT as well. The service provided and intellectual capabilities are outstanding and we would highly recommend Richard and his Lumina team.

Joe Menendez
CEO, The Vita Group

We worked with Lumina on a GDPR Audit. Richard was knowledgeable and professional throughout, and did the best he could to bring a dry topic to life through lots of real life examples and analogies. We were so impressed with the service Lumina provided and the value we got from partnering with them on this project – we couldn’t recommend them enough.

Holly Cottingham, Vintec Laboratories

Discuss your business needs today

Get in touch Schedule a call