Ensuring your school website is compliant with the new Privacy Directive

The Privacy and Electronic Communications Directive from the EU is not necessarily something you might consider as bedtime reading, but it does have an impact on your school.

For that is the formal name of what is becoming known as the Cookie Law – a regulation which came into effect on 26th May this year.

Cookies are typically used to enable users to log in to a website, to display content relevant to the user, to remember a user’s preferences, for Google Analytics, etc. If you have a video of your school on your website and it is hosted by someone such as YouTube, then that will probably have cookies within it.

The Information Commissioners Office has powers to fine website owners up to £500,000 for serious breaches in the law – but fortunately the chance of a school being fined anything in the first couple of years of the implementation of the regulation are slight.

However… (and this is the point that some schools have found when they have been wrapped over the knuckles in relation to issues such as having pupil data on memory sticks or laptops) the embarrassment factor that can arise from being caught out publicly is rather large. Indeed the resultant publicity can, at a stroke, counter all the good that a well-designed website does the school.

To help you ensure that everything is in order on your website we can undertake a “Cookie Audit” review for you for £75.00. We’ll undertake a review of your site and let you know if you are compliant with the Directive.

What’s more, if you are not compliant we will advise you on the necessary steps to take to correct this.

You can find out more about the cookie law and also our Cookie Audit Review on our website at www.inco-education.co.uk/cookie_audits.php

Or contact us by email at info@inco-education.co.uk or by calling 01902 784 800.