As unluck would have it, it seems that I have had an example of
something along these lines today!!!
Here is the text of a letter I have just sent to a mobile phone company
that sent me an unsolicited text.
Names redacted to protect the guilty . . ;-)
Comments, particularly about the DP aspects welcome.
Nigel
------------------------------------------------------------------------
9 October 2006
REDACTEDNAME Ltd
by first class post and fax
Dear Sirs,
THE FACTS
At exactly 13:52 today we received the following advertising text
message from you to one of my Orange mobile telephones in the possession
of my wife, at Manningtree, Essex.
"Orange customer, you may now c;aim your FREE CAMERA PHONE upgrade for
your loyalty. Call now on 020 3xxx xxxx. Offer ends 10th Oct. T&C’s
apply. Opt-out available."
The sender’s telephone number had been concealed and was replaced by a
text string (“SOMEOTHERREDACTEDNAME.NET”). I checked the Internet to see
if there was a web page on this address but there wasn’t.
I immediately telephoned the London number which was contained within
the advertisement, and it was answered by ‘Dion’. I noticed that the
line quality was somewhat poor. I told Dion that we had just received
his company’s advertising text message and that I wanted to know more
about the offer, and your company.
I first of all asked him if he was calling on behalf of Orange, and he
replied in the affirmative.
He asked me for my mobile phone number, and I gave him my own personal
mobile number. He asked me to tell him if I was on Pay and Go or
contract. I replied that I was not interested in discussing my existing
arrangements but that wished to learn more about exactly what your
company was offering, and how.
He then gave me a short sales pitch about a contract for £12.50 per
month and some free text message a free camera phone. He said that this
contract would be with the new “Three” network. In view of the contents
of your text message to us,. I asked him if his company was in fact an
independent company, and he said the company (which I now know to be
your company REDACTEDNAME Communications Ltd) was authorised by Orange,
and also by “Three Network”.
I asked him if that meant that your company was independent of Orange
and Three, and he admitted that it did.
I asked him for your company’s address, and he told me you traded from
123 REDACTED COURT, S.W.5 (although he seemed to think it was S.W.59 –
the full postcode being SW5 9...). I obtained your Registered Address
from Companies House.
I asked him if you were a UK corporation, and he said yes. I asked him
in that case if he mind telling what the company number was, and he said
he would have to transfer me to a manager for that. I then spoke to ‘Mark’.
’Mark’ confirmed the identity of the company, and I asked him how
REDACTEDNAME Communications had obtained my personal information,
including the fact that I was an Orange subscriber. He replied that
REDACTEDNAME Communications did nto have access to any personal data,
that they sent text messages out to random numbers from what he
described as an ‘opt-in list’. He then said something to the effect of
‘I suppose you want to be removed from the list’.
I asked him for more information about his company’s relationship with
Orange as by this point I had begun to suspected that your company and
its ‘call centre operators’ (who I believe, but do not know for certain,
are in India) have unlawfully obtained personal information about me
which may have been unlawfully exported from the European Economic Area
contrary to the Data Protection Act 1998.
He replied that you did not have personal information about me, but that
you do have information about my Orange contract, through your company’s
appointment by Orange as an Authorised Upgrader and that this
information may be accessed via my mobile number.
In other words, it seems to me that you access part of my personal
information (provided to Orange for the purpose of them providing me
with services). The information that you appear to be able to access
simply by entering my telephone number, is specifically whether my
contract with Orange is pay-monthly or pay-as-you-go and you can also
determine whether Orange would offer a subsidy if you can persuade me to
extend my contract with them, irrespective of the fact that I do not
have any contractual or other relationship with your company.
I asked Mark once again to explain about your company;s relationship
with Orange, and he said that your were acting on their own account in
sending out the text message advertising but when acting as authorised
dealers for Orange they can offer upgrades of telephone handset to
Orange’s existing customers.
‘Mark’ also told me that your company could be reached by fax at 0871
XXX XXXX.
MY ENQUIRY
1. Could you please comment on the above statement of facts in relation
to the Data Protection Act situation.
2. Could you also please confirm that you are able to access the
recording of the call with your employees ‘Dion’ and ‘Mark’ between
1355-1405 today and whether your records confirms the facts as I have
set them out above.
3. Do you agree with my assessment that in sending out text messages to
my mobile telephone, it would appear that you have contravened various
parts of Privacy and Electronic Communication Regulations 2003/. If
not, why not?. (In particular I would draw your attention inter alia
to Regulation 22 and the interpretation section (R.2)).
CLAIM
I claim damages under R.30 of the Regulations.
If you we do not agree the amount of such damages within 7 days of
todays date, I will issue a Claim in the County Court under the
Regulations for your breach of statutory duty for an unspecified amount
not expected to exceed three hundred pounds. You may consider this
letter as Notice in that regard.
Yours sincerely
pp. Nigel Roberts
Hitches, John F wrote:
> The nature of the data offered for sale on the programme made me think
> that some of it was collected from customers but this was added to by
> data that was collected as a result of doing an online credit reference
> check.
>
> John Hitches
> General Administrative Manager
> Kingston University
>
> This email has been scanned for all viruses by the MessageLabs Email
> Security System.
>
> ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
> All archives of messages are stored permanently and are
> available to the world wide web community at large at
> http://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/lists/data-protection.html
> If you wish to leave this list please send the command
> leave data-protection to [log in to unmask]
> All user commands can be found at : -
> http://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/help/commandref.htm
> Any queries about sending or receiving message please send to the list owner
> [log in to unmask]
> (all commands go to [log in to unmask] not the list please)
> ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
>
--
Nigel Roberts BSc CEng FBCS DipEngLaw, Director
Island Networks, 4&5 St Anne's Walk, Alderney, GY9 3JZ (GG)
Tel. 01481 822800 (office) or 0870 321 2282 (direct)
Mobile: 07010 7011 13 or +423 663 178 200
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
All archives of messages are stored permanently and are
available to the world wide web community at large at
http://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/lists/data-protection.html
If you wish to leave this list please send the command
leave data-protection to [log in to unmask]
All user commands can be found at : -
http://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/help/commandref.htm
Any queries about sending or receiving message please send to the list owner
[log in to unmask]
(all commands go to [log in to unmask] not the list please)
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
|
