By email to our Data Protection Officer: adam@sopro.io
By telephone on: +44 01772 217772
or
By post to Our registered office
By email at: rob@sopro.io
By telephone on: +44 207 030 3340
In addition to the specific purposes for which we may process your personal data we may also process any of your personal data where such processing is necessary for compliance with a legal obligation to which we are subject, or in order to protect your vital interests or the vital interests of another natural person.
Information Commissioner’s Office
Wycliffe House
Water Lane
Wilmslow
Cheshire
SK9 5AF
www.ico.org.uk
Wycliffe House
This policy was last updated on 29 March 2020
These terms and conditions apply between you, the User of this Website (including any sub-domains, unless expressly excluded by their own terms and conditions), and Prospect Global Ltd., the owner and operator of this Website. Please read these terms and conditions carefully, as they affect your legal rights. Your agreement to comply with and be bound by these terms and conditions is deemed to occur upon your first use of the Website. If you do not agree to be bound by these terms and conditions, you should stop using the Website immediately.
In these terms and conditions, User or Users means any third party that accesses the Website and is not either (i) employed by Prospect Global Ltd. and acting in the course of their employment or (ii) engaged as a consultant or otherwise providing services to Prospect Global Ltd. and accessing the Website in connection with the provision of such services.
You must be at least 18 years of age to use this Website. By using the Website and agreeing to these terms and conditions, you represent and warrant that you are at least 18 years of age.
You can contact Prospect Global Ltd. by email on ryan@sopro.io.
This statement sets out the operating procedures SoPro undertakes to ensure GDPR best practice is observed to the greatest extent possible, at all times.
The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) is a legal framework that sets guidelines for the collection, storage, and processing of personal information from individuals who live in the European Union (EU).
The Information Commissioner’s Office is the UK regulator dealing with the Data Protection Act 2018 and the General Data Protection Regulation and the Privacy and Electronic Communications (EC Directive) Regulations 2003 across the UK.
The ICO are like the data protection police and we need to make sure we always keep on their good side. Our determination to be 100% GDPR and PECR compliance will do exactly that!
It is important to take GDPR compliance very seriously, since the penalties for non-compliance are punitive and designed to be painful. You definitely don’t want to be on the receiving end of an ICO investigation or enforcement notice!
SoPro is a service provider, when you engage our services, we work for you, and
when we create data, we create data exclusively for you.
To put this in the language of GDPR and the ICO:
SoPro’s services are designed and offered solely to help businesses promote to
other businesses. I.e. B2B marketing only.
Before launching new client activity, SoPro conducts an in-depth assessment to
establish if the product or service, combined with the proposed targeting, meets
the criteria for GDPR compliant business to business (b2b) marketing. This
assessment is called the Legitimate Interest Assessment (LIA).
Prior to conducting the LIA, suitability can usually be determined by the
following two questions:
At the core of the SoPro process is the identification of target companies.
Whilst the details of this stage can vary, it involves no personal information
at all. Once the list of accounts has been finalised we then determine the
details of the individuals in the target role(s) at the companies. This stage
typically generates Personally Identifiable Information (PII).
Personally Identifiable Information (PII) data held is kept to an absolute
minimum:
GDPR sets out a number of permissible circumstances (or categories) under which
PII can be stored and processed, the most appropriate category in the case of
SoPro is Legitimate Interests.
This link explains the Legitimate Interests basis for storing and processing PII:
https://ico.org.uk/for-organisations/guide-to-the-general-data-protection-regulation-gdpr/lawful-basis-for-processing/legitimate-interests/
To ensure client activity falls into this category, prior to engaging, we will
carry out a full Legitimate Interests Assessment (LIA) with each new client.
Essentially the LIA is a questionnaire containing a series of questions about
your scenario. There are 3 areas that need to be satisfied for Legitimate
Interests to be used as a basis for processing PII:
If SoPro determines that your planned B2B prospecting activity does not meet the
criteria for Legitimate Interests within the scope of GDPR then we cannot
support the activity within any regions subject to GDPR.
Whilst GDPR controls the storage and processing of personal data in the UK,
sending messages is regulated under the Privacy and Electronic Communications
Regulations (PECR). This is very clear as to the requirements on business
communication:
“You can email or text any corporate body (a company, Scottish partnership,
limited liability partnership or government body). However, it is good practice
– and good business sense – to keep a ‘do not email or text’ list of any
businesses that object or opt out, and screen any new marketing lists against
that.”
https://ico.org.uk/for-organisations/guide-to-pecr/electronic-and-telephone-marketing/electronic-mail-marketing/
All SoPro employees undergo GDPR, PECR and general compliance training, this
covers the GDPR rule set in detail, the relevance and impact of those rules on
SoPro and our clients, and the steps we take to ensure best practice is observed
at all times. We also make clear the consequences (I.e. penalties) associated
with failure to meet the strict GDPR standards.
SoPro is a UK based company and operates under UK law. Where the service is used
to target countries outside of the UK we are unable to provide guidance or take
responsibility for any additional or differing laws that may be in place.
Whilst SoPro continues to take extensive measures to ensure best practice with
respect to GDPR and PECR across all client activity, clients should take note
that responsibility for compliance vests (in different forms) with all parties.
SoPro cannot be abreast of the constantly evolving regulatory frameworks in all
countries at all times, as such it is important that you, as the client, have
knowledge of your local regulatory climate and ensure your business operates
within the relevant regulatory frameworks.
“We’ve been hearing a lot of weird and wonderful rumours about the incoming GDPR
regulations so we thought a dedicated compliance FAQ would be a useful way to
address the most common questions.
I think we might be able to put your mind to rest on most of the GDPR fears, it is
certainly not as bad as many are making out. For example the idea of only being able
to contact info@… addresses is totally untrue. But it is not the worst we’ve heard…
by any stretch.
You can definitely contact name@company.com. Yes it is personal data but GDPR
clarifies that processing personally identifiable data is fine on several grounds,
including for marketing purposes, under the Legitimate Interests basis.
Consent to send email is also not required for UK B2B marketing communications, that
is legislated under the UKs PECR B2B exemption. (NB. Totally different for B2C
scenarios, but that is nothing new).
The other GDPR compliance points are a bit more labour intensive to manage such as
data storage, data security, additional policies and implementing the processes to
handle Right to be Forgotten and Subject Access requests when they come in. Plus the
usual unsubscribe and opt out lists. Oh… and staff training requirements.
Compliance is actually one of the common reasons many companies use SoPro to handle
the whole shebang. Setting up a compliant prospecting channel internally is complex,
expensive and slow. For larger firms the cost of managing compliance alone can
easily outweigh the entire cost of a SoPro campaign.
We might not be solicitors/legal experts (and I should clarify this post definitely
doesn’t constitute legal advice), but you are in safe hands with SoPro, and we are
more than happy to jump on a call with your compliance team if useful.”
The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) is a legal framework that sets guidelines for the collection, storage, and processing of personal information from individuals who live in the European Union (EU).
The Information Commissioner’s Office is the UK regulator dealing with the Data Protection Act 2018 and the General Data Protection Regulation and the Privacy and Electronic Communications (EC Directive) Regulations 2003 across the UK.
The ICO are like the data protection police and we need to make sure we always keep on their good side. Our determination to be 100% GDPR and PECR compliance will do exactly that!
It is important to take GDPR compliance very seriously, since the penalties for non-compliance are punitive and designed to be painful. You definitely don’t want to be on the receiving end of an ICO investigation or enforcement notice!
Most marketing formats have evolved to rely heavily on the use of customer data.
GDPR is a rule set governing the circumstances and manner in which data can be processed legally. It also introduces some scary consequences for falling foul of the law.
GDPR also sets out the framework for which types of data are considered Private and should be treated as such. The GDPR-savvy phrase used to describe private data is Personally Identifiable Information [PII].
Most businesses are surprised by the amount of Personally Identifiable Information (PII) stored within their systems, often without any specific intent or purpose.
The aim of GDPR is to provide data protection guidelines for companies that collect, store, or process personal data, this is of course almost every company! From an email outreach perspective, GDPR and PECR guidelines oblige businesses to ensure marketing emails are directed to the individuals who are likely to find the content useful and relevant in their working capacity within the target business. That is ultimately the test for designating each communication as B2B in nature, and as such qualifying for the PECR B2B exemption. On that basis we ensure that:
It’s true to say that GDPR is complicated and that when you add in PECR requirements the situation can be confusing. However, we understand that both GDPR and PECR apply and we take our obligations very seriously.
Our innovative prospecting approach is inherently GDPR and PECR compliant. We only target business customers with carefully crafted communication and ensure we meet PECR consent and opt-out requirements.
We acknowledge our GDPR responsibility and ensure we meet our obligations throughout the process and help our clients understand and meet their obligations.
We send millions of emails each year. Post GDPR, we’ve noticed that some prospects mistakenly believe that email marketing became largely illegal after May 25th 2018.
A: It didn’t. Why are we so sure? Because we have worked hard to ensure that we meet the regulations’ various guidelines on data protection, relevance, targeting, etc. It hasn’t been easy. In fact, it has taken many months of blood, sweat and tears for us to say with total confidence that every SoPro campaign is and always will be 100% GDPR compliant.
What have we changed to become GDPR compliant?
A: With a long history of supporting hundreds of clients, there are hundreds of technical and operational changes that we’ve had to make to ensure compliance. We’ve read the regulations, received legal advice and training, nominated a Data Protection Officer who has led our GDPR mission, adapted our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy, improved our database functionality and worked with our suppliers and clients in order to ensure every aspect of our operation is 100% GDPR compliant.
No.
Yes. The GDPR does not replace PECR – although it has amended the definition of consent. You need to comply with both GDPR and PECR for your business-to-business marketing.
The EU is in the process of replacing the current e-privacy law with a new ePrivacy Regulation (ePR). However, the new ePR is yet to be agreed. The existing PECR rules continue to apply (with the new definition of consent) until the new ePR is finalised.
It is recommended that businesses appoint a Data Protection Officer to oversee adherence to the rules for certain types of processing however it is not a legal requirement.
At a minimum, you should have nominated an individual able to act as your compliance officer on an immediate basis when needed. That person can be employed directly (I.e. perhaps a CTO or managing director) or employed through a compliance support service.
If you are a business conducting in-house marketing activity to help sell a product or service, then you are the data controller with respect to the data associated with that campaign. [Article 24]
If you are a provider (business entity or freelance) of marketing services, employed to help a business sell a product or service, then the client is the data controller and you are more than likely employed as the processor. [Article 28]
In this case, due to our ability to work to your exact requirements, target exactly the type of customers you are looking for with emails that look exactly like you sent them, we have determined that we are acting as Joint Controllers with you, as defined in GDPR. We work in partnership with our clients to ensure that every campaign delivers the best possible results. We jointly determine how data is to be collected, stored, and processes and as such become joint controllers. [Article 26]. Don’t worry – this is not too bad! We have produced a comprehensive Data Sharing Agreement to help us define exactly what this means.
With respect to data protection laws, B2B marketing campaigns are perfectly legal when conducted in a compliant manner and we recognise that both GDPR and PECR apply.
GDPR defines just six lawful basis on which you can process personal data. Our primary lawful basis is ‘legitimate interest’. We have completed a full blown Data Protection Impact Assessment to ensure our approach meets GDPR requirements in full.
To ensure that your marketing is conducted in accordance with all relevant regulatory frameworks we recommend you conduct your own assessments and of course complete your own GDPR preparations.
Just in case you need help with this we’ve prepared a Legitimate Interest Assessment (LIA) which can be undertaken on your behalf.
Not necessarily. GDPR is concerned with how we collect, store and process personal data.
Under GDPR, Consent is one lawful basis for processing personal data, but there are alternatives. In particular, you may be able to rely on ‘legitimate interests’ to justify collecting, storing, and processing personal data.
When it comes to using data for marketing purposes and questions of consent, the relevant framework is actually PECR.
Regulations covering B2B marketing communications are generally speaking – less strict under PECR and consent is not required in B2B scenarios. You need to be careful about who you target and the type of messages you send but that’s where we come in, our approach is 100% GDPR AND PECR compliant.
For more info on the relevant regulations, here is a link to the UK ICO’s Guide to PECR, detailing when you need consent for electronic marketing among other topics: https://ico.org.uk/for-organisations/guide-to-pecr/electronic-and-telephone-marketing/
GDPR heavily regulates the storage and processing of Personally Identifiable Information (PII).
You should map your business systems to determine the data fields you store and categorise these in terms of their GDPR status.
Generally speaking, company information is not considered PII and can be stored and processed freely, as needed. This means you do not need to obtain consent to store a database of target companies.
Personally Identifiable Information may include fields such as prospect name, email, phone number, job titles and social profile URLs.
GDPR sets out a number of permissible circumstances under which PII can be processed, the most appropriate category in this case is Legitimate Interest although other categories may apply.
This link explains the Legitimate Interests basis for processing PII: https://ico.org.uk/for-organisations/guide-to-the-general-data-protection-regulation-gdpr/lawful-basis-for-processing/legitimate-interests/
To ensure marketing activity falls into this category, prior to commencing, you should carry out a full Legitimate Interests Assessment (LIA) for any marketing campaign you intend to run.
If you determine that your planned B2B prospecting activity does not meet the criteria for Legitimate Interests within the scope of GDPR you may not be able to conduct the activity within any regions subject to GDPR. However, this is very unlikely, and you should definitely talk to us before you abandon all hope!
We strongly advise that you complete your GDPR preparations regardless of whether you engage SoPro or not! Failure to complete GDPR can lead to punitive fines and robust enforcement action by the ICO.
We have produced a template Privacy Policy and Legitimate Interest Assessment to help get you started and to allow you to start your Sopro adventure.
Your key document is your Privacy Policy.
Any marketing messages should contain a link to a privacy policy explaining exactly what the user’s rights, as well as the type of data that is held about them, by who, and how the data was collected. You need to include us in your Privacy policy just to keep us both covered.
(If needed SoPro can provide a template privacy policy or review your existing one to ensure it meets the required standard.)
The rest of the documentation is just the standard GDPR set. Probably most importantly you need to know how you will manage any sort of request from a data subject. We can also help with but for example:
Managing Opting Out & Exclusion Lists
All recipients must be able to opt out easily to prevent further email communication being received. This is typically handled with an “unsubscribe” link.
Managing Subject Access Requests
All individuals have the right to request a copy of all data you hold on them.
When you receive a SAR you must have an efficient process to supply all personally identifiable data that you hold in connection with a data subject if necessary.
Managing Right to be Forgotten Requests
All individuals have the right to have their data removed (to be ‘forgotten’). You must have a reliable, repeatable process to remove all personally identifiable data that you hold in connection with a data subject.
Whilst GDPR controls the collection, storage and processing of personal data in the UK, sending messages is regulated under the Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations (PECR). This is very clear as to the requirements on business to business communication:
“You can email or text any corporate body (a company, Scottish partnership, limited liability partnership or government body). However, it is good practice – and good business sense – to keep a ‘do not email or text’ list of any businesses that object or opt out and screen any new marketing lists against that.”
This is where the SoPro approach really works – we only target business customers that are likely to be interested in your products and services.
Great question – the ICOs direct marketing checklist is a great set of guidelines,
here it is:
https://ico.org.uk/for-organisations/guide-to-pecr/electronic-and-telephone-marketing/electronic-mail-marketing/
You should ensure all employees undergo GDPR, PECR and general compliance training, covering the GDPR rule set in detail and the relevance and impact of those rules on your business. This training should set out the steps you take to ensure best practice is observed at all times and make clear the consequences associated with failure to meet the strict standards.
We take data security VERY seriously. We have completed a Data Protection Impact Assessment and ensure that all appropriate security measures to protect our data and your data at all times.
Where marketing activity is conducted to target non-EU nationals these campaigns are generally not subject to the same data privacy laws and GDPR does not apply.
Just be careful and remember that GDPR applies to EU nationals that now live outside the EU. This is quite a tricky aspect so please talk to us if you are unsure.
Naturally, we cannot be abreast of the constantly evolving regulatory frameworks in all countries at all times, as such it is important that you have knowledge of your local regulatory climate and ensure your business operates within the relevant regulatory frameworks and manage your campaigns accordingly.
We have collated the most useful links available to UK businesses researching the GDPR framework, key areas, timelines, scope and likely impact on B2B marketing.
Please note that GDPR rules are implemented at an EU Government (multinational) level. Each state is separately responsible for developing it own appropriate rule set ensuring, as a minimum, compliance with the EUs GDPR framework.
The UK Government has appointed the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) as the official body charged with ensuring national compliance with the GDPR. In light of this the ICO has released several handy guides.
Here are the most useful links from the key official bodies, including the UKs ICO, the UK Government, the European Legislation archives and the UKs Direct Marketing Association (DMA).
We suggest you put the kettle on:
GDPR final text (English)
ICO Guide to GDPR compliance – 12 Steps to take now (PDF)
GDPR Checklist 1 (UK ICO) – Data Controllers
GDPR Checklist 2 (UK ICO) – Data Processors
PECR text (UK Gov)
PECR B2B Exemption – (ico.org)
UK Direct Marketing Association (DMA) – 7 key points for B2B Marketers
Direct Marketing Guidance – FULL VERSION (UK ICO)
Direct Marketing Checklist – TLDR VERSION OF ABOVE LINK (UK ICO)