The agency urges UK business owners to refrain from publicly shaming shoplifters through photos in their establishments.
The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) advised against the practice of posting images of shoplifters, stating that it “may not be appropriate.” Additional details came from a report by The Times.
According to the ICO, businesses should instead report incidents to the police or share details with the management of the store where the suspected thief was caught.
However, the ICO clarified that sharing photos in public spaces, such as shop windows or on street poles, is inappropriate. They also discouraged posting such images in employee areas or passing them along to other stores.
Regulators emphasized that any sharing of personal information should be proportionate and necessary to meet specific goals.
This guidance follows an incident where the owner of a vintage clothing shop in Wales requested the removal of signs labeling shoplifters as “scums,” as they could be deemed “provocative and offensive.”
Recently, the National Bureau of Statistics (ONS) reported over 530,000 incidents of shoplifting in the year ending in March, marking a 20% rise from the previous year.
Tom Ironside, Director of the British Retail Consortium, described shoplifting as being “out of control” and pointed to organized crime’s significant role in retail theft, as reported by the BBC.
He noted, “The rise in organized crime is alarming; gangs are hitting multiple stores in a single day.” The financial toll on retailers and customers is roughly £2.2 billion ($2.95 billion) annually.
Conservative MP Katie Lamb expressed her concerns last week, stating, “Our system must take down offenders while adequately protecting the law.” She also mentioned that one of her constituents had been advised by police to erase a suspect’s photo due to potential data protection breaches. Despite providing strong evidence, including CCTV footage and credit card details, the retailer had not acted against the alleged shoplifter.
