language: en · last checked: 2026-09-06

Cookies and electronic-mail marketing

The two PECR rules that reach EdTech products: the storage-and-access (cookie) rule — whose consent requirement and exceptions were moved into Schedule A1 by the Data (Use and Access) Act 2025, see STORAGE-CONSENT.md — and the opt-in rule for unsolicited electronic-mail marketing with the soft opt-in, plus the sender-identity rule.

Regulation 6 — Storing information in the terminal equipment of a subscriber or user

Verbatim from legislation.gov.uk (consolidated text, valid as at 2026-02-05).

• a a reference (however expressed) to storing information, or gaining access to information stored, in the terminal equipment of a subscriber or user includes a reference to instigating the storage or access, and
• b except as otherwise provided, a reference (however expressed) to gaining access to information stored in the terminal equipment of a subscriber or user includes a reference to collecting or monitoring information automatically emitted by the terminal equipment.

Regulation 22 — Use of electronic mail for direct marketing purposes

Verbatim from legislation.gov.uk (consolidated text, valid as at 2026-02-05).

• a that person has obtained the contact details of the recipient of that electronic mail in the course of the sale or negotiations for the sale of a product or service to that recipient;
• b the direct marketing is in respect of that person’s similar products and services only; and
• c the recipient has been given a simple means of refusing (free of charge except for the costs of the transmission of the refusal) the use of his contact details for the purposes of such direct marketing, at the time that the details were initially collected, and, where he did not initially refuse the use of the details, at the time of each subsequent communication.

• a the sole purpose of the direct marketing is to further one or more of the charity’s charitable purposes;
• b the charity obtained the contact details of the recipient of the electronic mail in the course of the recipient—
  • i expressing an interest in one or more of the purposes that were the charity’s charitable purposes at that time; or
  • ii offering or providing support to further one or more of those purposes; and
• c the recipient has been given a simple means of refusing (free of charge except for the costs of the transmission of the refusal) the use of their contact details for the purposes of direct marketing by the charity, at the time that the details were initially collected, and, where the recipient did not initially refuse the use of the details, at the time of each subsequent communication.

• a a charity as defined in section 1(1) of the Charities Act 2011,
• b a charity as defined in section 1(1) of the Charities Act (Northern Ireland) 2008 (c. 12 (N.I.)), including an institution treated as such a charity for the purposes of that Act by virtue of the Charities Act 2008 (Transitional Provision) Order (Northern Ireland) 2013 (S.R. (N.I.) 2013 No. 211), and
• c a body entered in the Scottish Charity Register, other than a body which no longer meets the charity test in section 7 of the Charities and Trustee Investment (Scotland) Act 2005 (asp 10), and, in relation to such a charity, institution or body, “charitable purpose” has the meaning given in the relevant Act.

Regulation 23 — Use of electronic mail for direct marketing purposes where the identity or address of the sender is concealed

Verbatim from legislation.gov.uk (consolidated text, valid as at 2026-02-05).

A person shall neither transmit, nor instigate the transmission of, a communication for the purposes of direct marketing by means of electronic mail—

• a where the identity of the person on whose behalf the communication has been sent has been disguised or concealed; ...
• b where a valid address to which the recipient of the communication may send a request that such communications cease has not been provided;
• c where that electronic mail would contravene regulation 7 of the Electronic Commerce (EC Directive) Regulations 2002; or
• d where that electronic mail encourages recipients to visit websites which contravene that regulation.

Sources

• legislation.gov.uk — PECR 2003, consolidated text
• ICO — Guide to PECR

Meta

All regulation text above is reproduced verbatim from the consolidated PECR 2003 on legislation.gov.uk, extracted mechanically from the official XML. Each provision carries its official identifier as a trailing attribute anchor, the same id legislation.gov.uk uses.