ICO helpline advisors share their top data protection tips for small organisations

Our dedicated helpline and live chat service should be your first port of call if you can’t find the answers you need on our advice for small organisations website.         

The site is packed with practical and bite-sized guides, tips and tools which have been created with smaller organisations in mind.

It has all the information you need to get started with data protection, put the right steps in place and manage your ongoing data protection practices. The resources are quick and easy to digest, as we understand the limited resources smaller organisations have at their disposal.

Often, small organisations want to innovate, so there won’t always be a template to follow. That’s why our advisors are here to help.

We welcome calls from all small organisations, including:

• companies;
• sole traders;
• charities;
• societies;
• associations;
• voluntary groups; and
• anything in between.

Our friendly and knowledgeable helpline and live chat advisors are here to help you with queries on everything from data protection and marketing, how to handle a subject access request and much more.

Two of our advisors have shared their top data protection tips for small organisations.

Jai Horan has been at the ICO since 2023. 

She says it’s important to get the basics in place:

“The best way we can help any small business achieve compliance is to start with the basics. Get those right and the rest will follow much more easily.

“I take a lot of calls from small business owners who ask what they need to do to comply with data protection law. Even though it’s a really open-ended question, I’m trained to help them go from knowing nothing, to having a pretty good understanding of the basics and what they need to do next by the end of the call.

“Whenever I get one of these calls, I always start off by asking these five questions:

• Do you know exactly what types of personal information you have about people and where it’s saved?
• Do you know what you use this information for?
• Do you know how long you keep it?
• Have you told people why you’ve got it?
• Are you confident you’re keeping it safe?

“If the caller answers “no” to any of these, I can hear they’re worried. They’re probably thinking I’m about to call them out or trip them up – but nothing could be further from the truth. It’s my job to help them get it right.

“The ICO has a helpful step by step beginner's guide to data protection, which is worth a read if you’re new to this.”

Zachary Henshaw has been at the ICO since 2023.                        

He says the only ‘silly’ question is the question you don’t ask:

“In my experience advising small organisations, there are no ‘silly’ questions. You’re not expected to know everything. If you’ve called us, it’s because you’re trying to get it right and we want to help if you get stuck.

“Our phone lines do get busy, so it’s always worth checking our advice for small organisations website to see if the answer you need is there. We have a range of resources to help you. If not, give us a call or start a live chat.

“We get such a wide variety of questions on our helpline, there aren’t many that surprise us. So even if you think your issue is simple, unique or even contentious, don’t be put off calling. You’ll need advice sooner or later, so please don’t wait.

“I always find it easier to help small organisations who are just starting out, because data protection falls into place easily if you get it right first time around. But even if you end up playing catch-up, we can still help you find your way through.”