The Commissioner's plans could result in the jailing of people
who thought they were buying legitimate information, according to
the head of the Institute of Credit Management (ICM), Philip
King.
"This is a sledgehammer to crack a nut," said King. "There is
now the very real risk that this will impinge severely on what
credit managers do as a regular part of their job."
The Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) recently published a
report, 'What Price Privacy?', which recommended to both houses of
parliament that the penalties for illegally trading in personal
information be raised.
Currently fines up to £5000 in a Magistrates' Court or up to any
amount in a Crown Court are payable on conviction. The report
recommends raising the penalties to include prison sentences of up
to two years, on top of fines.
King said, though, that this raises the prospect of people who
believed they were working legally going to jail. "We are concerned
that the way in which the Data Protection Act phrases
responsibility and liability makes it hazardous," said King. "I
personally would be less confident now of instructing a thoroughly
reputable company who may then sub-contract it out."
"Someone four or even five levels down the line may be in breach
of the Act, but under ICO guidelines I am equally guilty as the
original initiator," said King. "That could land me in gaol for two
years."
The ICO has issued the recommendations to deal with what it sees
as a growing problem of illegal data harvesting.
"Investigations by the ICO and the police have uncovered
evidence of a widespread and organised undercover market in
confidential personal information," said the report. "Since the Act
came into force, the ICO has received a steady number of complaints
from individuals who feel their privacy has been breached. Many
more cases come to the attention of the ICO through joint working
protocols with bodies such as the Department for Work and Pensions
(DWP), HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) and police forces around the
country."
The report identified journalists as some of the most common
buyers of illegal information and private detectives as the most
common suppliers. "Suppliers use two main methods to obtain the
information they want: through corruption, or more usually by some
form of deception, generally known as ‘blagging’," said the
report.
The ICO said that it would issue a follow up report in six
months' time.
