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Image: RON
On 21 February 2024, the first enforcement notice relating to direct marketing was sent to FT Rams Consulting.
The main reasons for the notice were that the responsible party did not:
• stop sending direct marketing after the recipient opted out and
• did not obtain the recipient’s consent before sending them electronic direct marketing.
The Information Regulator released a media statement shortly before the enforcement notice, which had some very interesting statements.
Advocate Pansy Tlakula, the chairperson of the Information Regulator, had this to say:
“Our leniency regarding direct marketing through unsolicited electronic communications is going to be a thing of the past because responsible parties (public or private bodies) ignore the provisions of section 69 of POPIA and infringe on the rights of data subjects. In response to this, we are also putting together a guidance note which will clearly spell out the dos and don’ts of processing personal information for the purposes of direct marketing by means of unsolicited electronic communication”
In 2025, it is still difficult for South Africans to accept any calls due to an influx of telemarketing and fake calls.
Many are opting to only accept WhatsApp calls, which is not always practical for businesses.
At the heart of this, it’s data privacy, which has been severely compromised. In the interest of addressing this challenge, the Information Regulator has championed strengthening the Protection of Personal Information Act (POPIA).
Even though this legal instrument has been tightened, the problem still persists.
What else can be done to address the challenge of telemarketing and fake calls?
Firstly, it’s important to understand at some level, it is not illegal for a telemarketing company to call and to advertise a product.
What is problematic is the means by which the information is received. It’s also important to understand that in some instances, consumers do grant permission for their information to be used.
This happens when consumers complete forms to get something for free, which is often the case online.
Due to a lack of understanding, many accept terms and conditions without even reading.
In addition, there are limited options granted to the consumer to avoid granting consent to the use and selling of their data.
Due to limited protections available, some consumers have opted for third-party apps to screen calls, and some have used built-in features within their mobile devices.
All of these solutions are not sufficient to address this challenge.
It seems there’s a need for a serious industry intervention to address this challenge.
A better solution needs to be designed to avoid the current abuse of consumer data.
There’s a need to begin a process of elevating the discussion about personal data.
A number of companies have not fully understood the seriousness of handling personal data with care. Many find creative ways of working around POPIA.
As a result, some consumers have been severely impacted by scammers and those who pretend to be legitimate entities.
It’s about time that personal data is treated as an asset. Coupled with that, there’s a need to create more awareness about the value of data.
Consumers ought to be given tools to grant permission to the use of their data without being tricked with long terms and conditions and confusing access to information.
Business and the Information Regulator ought to work closely together to address this challenge, which is becoming a serious scourge in South Africa.
If nothing is done, consumers may completely avoid calls and only respond to WhatsApp, which may be detrimental to ease of communication.
At the same time, as these challenges are addressed, it will be important to avoid anything that will stifle innovation.
For now, it’s clear there’s a major problem with how companies are accessing personal data. A solution to this may enable quality communication between consumers, citizens and even the government.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Wesley Diphoko is a Technology Analyst and the Editor-in-Chief of FastCompany (SA) magazine.