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AU: Over 30,000 Optus customers’ debt data exposed on job freelancer site

Posted on December 17, 2015 by Dissent

Josh Taylor reports:

The personal data of 31,150 mostly former Optus customers was posted on short-term job website Freelancer.com in major breach of their privacy, Crikey can reveal.

Earlier this week, Crikey reported that an employee of the telecommunications company’s debt collector ARC Mercantile had posted a spreadsheet of data of customers who owed a debt to Optus onto Freelancer.com, a job auctions website.

You can read more on Crikey if you have a subscription. The notification letter, reproduced in the article, indicates that the exposed information included names, postal and email addresses, telephone numbers, date of birth, and collections history details.

Optus went to court to obtain a court order to compel ARC Mercantile to provide the identity information of anyone who might have downloaded the spreadsheet. ARC Mercantile turned over information on 51 potential freelance contractors who may have downloaded it.

Category: Business SectorExposureNon-U.S.Subcontractor

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1 thought on “AU: Over 30,000 Optus customers’ debt data exposed on job freelancer site”

  1. Bianca says:
    December 28, 2015 at 3:01 am

    I am one of the victims whose identity has been stolen.. Optus offered a 12 month watch on my credit history etc… What a bunch of fucking wankers! I’m in this situation because of them ?????

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