The ICO again fumbled the ball when Reform UK launched its data harvesting expedition masked as a 'competition'.
There was a clear breach of transparency obligations under data protection law.
And yet, the regulator just told people to complain to Reform and come back if they were unhappy 🤷♂️
#ResetTheICO #dataprotection #privacy #ico #digitalrights #gdpr #ukpolitics #ukpol
This isn't a regulator having a bad year. The ICO has stopped doing its job.
Behind all these scandals, real people are suffering real harms with no support.
That's why we need a fundamental reset of the ICO that puts our rights first.
Protect the public, not the powerful – sign the petition ⬇️
https://action.openrightsgroup.org/reset-ico/?mtm_campaign=reset-the-ico&mtm_source=mastodon
#ResetTheICO #dataprotection #privacy #ico #digitalrights #gdpr #ukpolitics #ukpol
Sign the petition! The ICO is failing us. It's time for a reset. Time and time again, the ICO has failed to protect our data rights. They failed to formally investigate the Ministry of Defence over the leak of a spreadsheet detailing 19,000 people who were fleeing the Talibans – the worst data breach in UK history. They ignored thousands of complaints from the public and allowed Meta to press ahead with plans to scrape its users data. They ignored ORG and 70 other organisations who raised concerns about serious data breaches arising from the Home Office’s e-visa scheme.
The ICO's 'public sector' approach gives organisations the go ahead to carry on with bad practices, knowing they'll be let off the hook.
They issued a weak reprimand to the Post Office for publishing the identities of Horizon’s victims, adding insult to injury for the victims of this scandal.
https://www.theguardian.com/business/2025/dec/03/post-office-data-breach-ico-reprimand
#ResetTheICO #dataprotection #privacy #ico #digitalrights #gdpr #ukpolitics #ukpol
Calls for the ICO to investigate the eVisa scheme have gone unheard.
ORG flagged that the Home Office failed to assess the risks of a digital-only scheme, exposing migrants to data errors and technical failures that impact their immigration status.
Rights fall apart without an effective regulator.
#ResetTheICO #dataprotection #privacy #ico #digitalrights #evisa #gdpr #ukpolitics #ukpol
The UK data watchdog is all bark, no bite.
From failing to investigate complaints to forgoing regulatory action in favour of a slap on the wrist, the ICO isn't doing its job.
It's time that the regulator is overhauled, because data protection laws only work if they're enforced.
Read our blog ⬇️
#ResetTheICO #dataprotection #privacy #ico #digitalrights #gdpr #ukpolitics #ukpol
Even faced with the worst data breach in UK history, the ICO refused to investigate the Ministry of Defence for a leak of data on 19,000 Afghans fleeing the Taliban.
That's why over 70 groups and experts joined ORG's demand for an inquiry into the regulator over its use of non-binding reprimands.
#ResetTheICO #dataprotection #privacy #ico #digitalrights #gdpr #ukpolitics #ukpol
Open Rights Group
