It depends on the circumstances.
I thought I would go a little off-piste from the Direct Marketing Guidance as I read an interesting ICO case on a fundamental part of the rules around marketing.
The rules in the GDPR only apply if you use personal data in your marketing.
So what is personal data?
“any information relating to an identified or identifiable living individual”
So, your name, address and your email address count, but in a recent Freedom of Information case, the ICO had to decide whether the name of a police dog was personal data.
The case concerned an incident where a police dog injured a woman at an illegal rave.
The woman requested information from the Avon and Somerset Constabulary (ASC) as part of a complaint she’d filed.
ASC ruled that the information requested:
- Name of the dog
- Name and force number of the dog handler
- The handler’s qualifications and training records.
was subject to an exemption from disclosure as there was an ongoing investigation and the information was personal data.
The ICO agreed that 2 was obviously personal data and felt that 3 was capable of being disclosed in an anonymous form, therefore removing any personal data.
The question regarding the name of the dog remained.
Due to the nature of the relationship between a dog and his handler, which is a very personal bond, the handler’s colleagues would definitely know who he was, and it was likely that others outside the police force would also be able to identify him from his dog’s name. The ICO, therefore, concluded that the dog’s name was personal data and was therefore exempt from disclosure.
Most of the time what is personal data is clear, and it’s likely that your dog’s name would count (especially if they are well known in your area, as is my dog, all the neighbours love him and know he is ours!).
However, this case shows that it can be a very subjective decision and dependent on the specific circumstances. When it’s not straightforward it can leave you with a question – do the direct marketing rules apply?
PS. It’s unlikely a cat, pet rabbit or gerbil would have the same relationship with its owner to allow someone to identify them, but you never know ?