The body’s guidance, which can be found here, provides key considerations for each stage of the product lifecycle — from kick-off through to research, development, design, launch, and post-launch.

In addition to offering must-follow practical steps for complying with data protection laws — including UK GDPR, which was (re)introduced last week by the Department for Science, Innovation, and Technology (DSIT) — the content also advises on what should and could be done by tech teams past the legal requirements.

In particular, ‘The case for privacy’ section of the guidance advocates for tech teams to seriously consider the broader impact and implications that a lack of care around data privacy and protection can have.

“Your organisation must comply with these [UK GDPR, DPA 2018, PECR] laws. But there are also pressing reasons beyond legal compliance to prioritise privacy,” the ICO wrote on the page. “Privacy also has real-world impacts on people’s rights and freedoms. Privacy-minded design will also benefit your organisation, reducing risks, saving time and expense, and ultimately helping you build better digital products.”

In addition to ICO’s new written content, the body has also released a selection of videos, taken from talks delivered as part of ICO’s ‘Privacy, Seriously’ event last month. These include keynotes and panels from data privacy experts, technologists, and designers. They can be viewed here.

The ICO’s guidance was also announced at the 23rd February event.

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“The new guidance is part of the ICO’s commitment to helping organisations throughout the UK embed privacy in everything they do,” commented Stephen Almond, ICO Director of Technology, Innovation and Enterprise.

“Written in consultation with working technologists, it offers some certainty on what you must, should and could do to address privacy concerns in the product lifecycle. Beyond helping to comply with the law, we hope that these resources also emphasise the fundamental importance of privacy in our products and services.”

This latest guidance comes off the back of the body releasing a data-focused digital learning hub for SMEs in January. The creation of the hub was prompted by recent ICO research that uncovered 91% of people are worried about having their information sold to other companies without their consent, and 87% are worried about a company losing their personal information.