IAB UK responds to ICO call for views on regulatory approach to low-risk advertising

In July, the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) launched a call for views on whether a more risk-based approach to enforcing the Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations (PECR) could support innovation in digital advertising. Specifically, the ICO is exploring whether companies could deliver certain types of advertising activity such as privacy-preserving ad measurement and contextual advertising - that are unlikely to trigger enforcement action under PECR, where the privacy risk to individual users is minimal.

Importantly, this call for views does not propose any changes to the UK GDPR. The ICO also confirmed that it will continue to enforce consent requirements for the collection of personal data used for granular ad targeting and personalisation.

We have submitted a response welcoming the ICO’s efforts to encourage innovation through a revised enforcement approach to PECR. In our submission, we highlight several attributes of digital advertising that we believe are both essential to the functioning of the ecosystem and low risk to users.

However, we also raise concerns about the timing of this call for views, particularly as the ICO has yet to publish the outcome of its consultation on the draft updated storage and access guidance that we responded to in March. We encourage the ICO to align the next stage of this work with broader government initiatives on PECR exceptions, following the passage of the Data (Use and Access) Act, and to consider additional measures that could stimulate sustainable growth in the UK’s digital advertising sector without impacting users.