Information Commissioner's Office: Registration Inbox AI
Machine learning algorithm to categorise emails sent to the Information Commissioner's Office’s registration inbox.
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This algorithmic tool helps to categorise emails sent to the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO)’s registration inbox and sends out auto-replies in specific cases. The registration inbox generally receives queries from organisations or sole traders who are registered, or are looking to register, with the ICO. Every organisation or sole trader who processes personal information needs to pay a data protection fee to the ICO, unless they are exempt. Typical queries may be about registering with the ICO, how to make a payment, or how to change or update details about a registration.
The ICO’s registration team often manages high volumes of queries. Assigning members of the team to respond to every request takes time and can lead to high caseloads for Data Protection Fees Officers (DP Fees Officers).
To reduce the burden on caseloads and ensure we respond in a timely manner to customers, the ICO, alongside selected third parties, have developed an algorithmic tool that categorises emails that are sent to the inbox and sends out auto-replies in specific cases. The algorithm takes into account the content of the email being sent to the inbox and detects whether it is a request about changing a business address. In cases where it detects this kind of request, the algorithm sends out an autoreply that directs the customer to a new online service and points out further information required to process a change request. Only emails with an 80% certainty of a change of address request will be sent an email containing the link to the change of address form.
For additional information, read the ICO’s privacy notice, contact the ICO’s data protection officer at dpo@ico.org.uk, or call our main helpline on 0303 123 1113.