Data Theft

[Albert Tatlock]

Anyone see the Dispatches documentary on 'Data Theft' on Channel 4 last night? This identified potentially hundreds of thousands of personal records and UK bank records (down to minute details) that are available for sale from India and London. The data was clearly obtained from multiple call centres.

 

It is obvious my data was forwarded by one mobile telephone company to a finance company (I had just moved house and only done one transaction with a UK company at that address). I have already written a stinky letter complaining and am awaiting a reply, with a view to proceding with a full and formal complaint under data protection legislation.

 

Has this happended to anyone else? It might not be that obvious that it has happended to you until you work out who has been calling you recently.

[Juan Kerr]

Anyone see the Dispatches documentary on 'Data Theft' on Channel 4 last night? This identified potentially hundreds of thousands of personal records and UK bank records (down to minute details) that are available for sale from India and London. The data was clearly obtained from multiple call centres.

 

It won't stop British companies outsourcing to India though, despite the fact that this sort of thing goes on day in day out. All these banks tell you they are so professional and ethical, but they are the first to shunt cheap, cheap, cheap services into rubbishy countries where different standards of business practice apply and stuff that could not happen in the UK is an everyday occurence.

 

These services are a threat to us all.

 

You deal with a Manx or British Bank because you want to be dealt with to western standards, and have western standards of security applied to your data, but in this world standards mean nothing any more. Your bank will tell you that strict agreements are written up to safeguard your data but once its gone, its gone, and they have little control moving forward.

 

I have been cold called by companies I have never heard of since one of my credit card services moved out there, and the data was obviously gleened from the card information. I complained to the bank and they just say its nothing to do with them.

 

In the UK even the NHS ships medical services to India so its not just your credit card, but highly personal data and X Ray images etc that languish out there ready to go to the highest bidder and people are stupid enough to let it happen.

 

All companies are concerned with is cost, they do not care about anything else and whilst that is the overriding concern more and more services will move out of Europe.

 

I have no problem with India competing for the business, but cost is only one issue. It really needs to work hard on corporate governance, introduce world standard data protection laws, and have a legal system that can come down hard on data theft and until it does no company should touch it with a barge pole because its frontier land.

[Cret]

I think things will revert back though gradually as people get sick of the poor service with things like overseas call centres.

 

I saw an advert for some service recently (I forget what) but one of their boasts was that they have a call centre in the UK so you've more chance of getting what you want done. Maybe it's the beginning of a trend reversal as a lot of people are fed up with it.