Security News > 2007 > July > Banks caught dumping customers' personal details in public waste bins

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/news/news.html?in_article_id=467604&in_page_id=1770 11th July 2007 A 'horrifying' number numbers of banks, shops and Government departments are said to be fuelling a £1.7billion a year crime racket by failing to protect people's privacy. They have been caught dumping customers' details in public waste bins or leaving personal information for all to see online. Their actions have prompted 24,000 complaints to privacy watchdogs, who said the lapses left customers wide open to identity theft. Information commissioner Richard Thomas said: 'The roll call of banks, retailers, Government departments, public bodies and other organisations which have admitted serious security lapses is, frankly, horrifying.' The warning comes today in the Information Commission Office's annual report, which shows complaints about breaches of privacy have risen nine per cent in the past year. Among those accused of dumping customers' details in bins are NatWest, Barclays, Nationwide building society and the Post Office. Orange compromised security by giving all its call centre staff the same computer log-in. The Immigration Advisory Service and the Child Support Agency were also accused, while the Department of Health left junior doctors' job applications on the Web for at least eight hours. There is a 'thriving and lucrative' market for illegally obtained personal information to be used in identity thefts and fraud, which costs an estimated £1.7billion a year, the commission says. Mr Thomas added: 'Over the last year we have seen far too many careless and inexcusable breaches of people's personal information.'

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http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/news/news.html?in_article_id=467604&in_page_id=1770