BT has been fined £77,000, after it sent nearly five million nuisance emails to customers.

An investigation by the Information Commissioner's Office found that the telecoms giant didn't have customers' consent for this sort of direct marketing, as reported by the BBC.

The 4.9 million emails, sent between December 2015 and November 2016, promoted three charities.

BT said it was disappointed by the ICO's decision to fine the company. It said that the emails had no financial benefit to BT and only minimal impact on customers. Out of nearly five million emails, there was just one complaint.

The company has since tightened up its procedures.

The ICO has reiterated the importance of reporting nuisance emails, so that companies can be punished when they breach the law.

Punchline said: "While £77,000 is a drop in the ocean for a company like BT, it is a lot of money to pay for one complaint. It's a stark reminder to businesses that things are going to get a lot stricter now GDPR is in place. If you're still not sure whether your company is compliant, now is the time to get all your policies and procedures in order. A fine won't put BT out of business, but it could put plenty of SMEs out of business."