The ICO has recently released its corporate strategy for 2026-2028. Recognising the tension between the possibilities of “data driven innovation” and the potential harms that misuse of data can bring, the ICO is “focusing on a clear purpose to build trust in responsible UK data use and innovation.”
The ICO has stated that its priorities are:
1. Personal data use that helps, not harms, children
2. Promoting trust and transparency in AI
3. Public services that use people’s data responsibly
4. Building cyber resilience to keep people’s data safe
To assist with these priorities the ICO plans to continue to use prevention and early intervention tactics (which it says are shown to have the greatest impact) combined with targeted and proportionate enforcement action.
The strategy is open for consultation until 23 August 2026 and can be found here.
