Data watchdog warns pub goers to think before giving details to ordering apps
Pub goers should be cautious when giving personal information to venues, according to the UK’s data privacy watchdog.
The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) has warned Brits to consider what information they are providing when using apps to order food and drink at pubs.
Pubs should only ask customers for information that is “relevant and necessary”, the ICO said.
Businesses should keep in mind the law states organisations should only collect the personal data they need, the body told CityA.M.
Individuals should have control over what happens to their data and a full understanding of what they are providing and why enables people to make that decision, the ICO added.
“I think it’s too easy to upload an app and straight away put your name, email address, payment details in, without actually understanding fully where that information may be shared and why it’s being used,” Suzanne Gordon, director of data protection at the ICO said.
“Ultimately this is your data, it’s your personal information and you need to be confident when you’re handing it over and the reasons why.”
Many pubs adopted mobile ordering app systems when they reopened after the first national lockdown while JD Wetherspoon has had an app since 2017.