11 UK Charities Punished for Violating Data Privacy Law

The United Kingdom’s Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) has imposed fines between £6,000 and £18,000 on 11 charities in the country for misuse of personal data of donors, BBC News reports. The ICO is looking at this as very serious breaches of the country’s Data Protection Act.

"[People] will be upset to learn the way their personal information has been analyzed and shared by charities they trusted with their details and their donations," said Information Commissioner Elizabeth Denham.

Charities fined include The International Fund for Animal Welfare, Oxfam, Cancer Research UK, The Royal British Legion and Battersea Dogs' and Cats' Home.

The ICO alleges these organizations secretly collected data on donors from other sources, ranked them by their wealth, attempted to track down past donors, and shared information with other charities without permission.

"We are working with the charities concerned, the Information Commissioner, and the Fundraising Regulator to ensure that any necessary remedial action is taken," said David Holdsworth of the Charity Commission for England and Wales.

Read full story on BBC News.