Smartone - Use of Personal Data in Direct Marketing

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  1. #1

    Join Date
    May 2003
    Posts
    2,207

    Smartone - Use of Personal Data in Direct Marketing

    I found this in my mailbox today. So basically if you don't want Smartone to spam you, you need to write them a letter or go to one of their offices to stop them!!

    Dear Ms XXX,

    To keep you informed of notices and updates relating to servicing your contract(s), latest offers and promotions on our services and products, together with services and products from our business partners (including travel, dining, entertainment, apparel, health & beauty, education, household, transportation, banking, insurance and other consumer products and services), we will continue to deliver this information to you as usual using your contact details such as your name, email address, correspondence address, telephone number and mobile phone number. For full details of our updated privacy policy, please click here.

    As we seek to look after you as we’d wish to be looked after ourselves, we will only send you notices and selected offers that have been screened as appropriate for you. If you would like to stop receiving this information, please write to our Data Protection Officer, identifying yourself with your name and contact number. You can also write to re-start receiving correspondence if you have unsubscribed from it previously.

    The Data Protection Officer can be contacted at:

    SmarTone Mobile Communications Limited,
    PO Box 68864,
    Kowloon East Post Office,
    Kowloon


    Yours sincerely,
    SmarTone Mobile Communications Limited


  2. #2

    Join Date
    Nov 2008
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    4,574

    I wouldn't dismiss all this kind of promotional stuff as rubbish (albeit, most of it is).

    From PCCW at least, I've had some great offers come up in the past when their sales rep has called me in order to secure an extension of my service plan.

    Credit Card providers on the other hand, continual abuse of my mailbox


  3. #3

    Join Date
    May 2003
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    2,207

    Service plan extensions are fine, and this is also not really what their mail was about. What irritates me is this:
    latest offers and promotions on our services and products, together with services and products from our business partners (including travel, dining, entertainment, apparel, health & beauty, education, household, transportation, banking, insurance and other consumer products and services)

    Something I opted out a long time ago.


  4. #4

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    MTR were much nicer about it when they mailed a few weeks ago saying almost the same thing, but they gave me an e-mail address that I could write to to opt out and object to the use of my personal information for the purposes stated. So I wrote to them to opt out and even got an acknowledgement from a real person in return!


  5. #5

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    Aug 2012
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    I suggest that you send a cmplaint to SmarTone and to these guys
    http://www.pcpd.org.hk/english/contact/contact.html

    I'm pretty incensed as I have also opted out for no unsolicited messages from SmarTone or any of their business partners.


  6. #6

    Join Date
    May 2003
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    2,207

    I did call them and after getting nowhere demanded to talk to a supervisor. Got my point through (either you respect that I opted out or lose me as a customer, plus offering to write a not so nicely worded letter to the SCMP), i'd recommend others to do the same.


  7. #7

    You are probably unaware that the law changed recently (like 47 minutes ago) forcing pretty much all firms that have you as a customer to send you some spam-like email reminding you of their privacy policy which they might spam you.

    And just in case they accidentally forget they probably include all that stuff as the penalty for not including it even if they don't pass along your details is probably considerably worse.

    No need to get excited or to write to anyone. Except maybe to PCPDto point out the law of unintended consequences - it was them telling/mandating firms to spam us to remind us that they don't spam us. Geddit?

    link here: http://www.pcpd.org.hk/english/infoc...s_20130328.htm

    I have got reminders from several including SCMP who I don't even have an account for at least 5 years, a solicitor who has not done any work for me for at least 5 years, cathay pacific (can't remember when I last flew with them). Etc.

    I guess it could be worse. Some of you lot could be in charge of North Korea's strategic nuclear missiles instead of just an email account.

    Last edited by zerocred; 01-04-2013 at 12:57 AM.