• by Ray Schultz , November 12, 2018

Britain’s Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) is probing an email campaign encouraging a hard line on Brexit as a possible violation of GDPR.

The so-called "bin Chequers" emails were sent by Mainstream Network, a group whose founders are anonymous. 

The ICO has confirmed that it is investigating the group, according to the Guardian.

Mainstream Network opposes Prime Minister Theresa May’s attempted “Chequers” Brexit deal and demands a complete break with the EU.

“What is likely is that we will be told we need to sign up to more European laws, accept European Court rulings, adopt lax immigration rules, make annual payments and even, perhaps, remain in the Customs Union after all,” the group says on its web site about a soft Brexit deal. “We will be boxed in with no way out.”

It concludes: “The reality is that no deal is better than partition or permanent vassalage.”

The site appears to be devoted to business and economic news, with a pro-Brexit skew.

The suspected GDPR violations concern use of personal data, the Guardian noes.

The group’s Facebook and Twitter pages remain live. 

The Guardian notes that the individuals behind Mainstream Network are anonymous. The group’s Facebook page lists general email addresses.

In a report issued last week, the ICO said it is fining Leave.EU, an anti-Brexit group, and Eldon Insurance, doing business as GoSkippy, £60,000 apiece. for “unlawfully” sending political messages.

Leave.EU had permission to email its subscribers. However, the group sent emails that also promoted GoSkippy products “for which they did not have consent,” the ICO adds. Leave.DU also utilized  email addresses and other data provided by Eldon, it adds. 

In a separate development, the ICO said on Monday that a man has been sentenced to six months in prison in the first prosecution under the Computer Misuse Act. It states that the defendant Musafa Kasim, who worked for accident firm Nationwide Accident Repair Services, accessed thousands of customer records without permission, using colleagues’ log-in credentials.