DataBreaches.Net

Menu
  • About
  • Breach Notification Laws
  • Privacy Policy
  • Transparency Report
Menu

UK: Record fines for company, senior staff and private investigators involved in illegal trade in personal information

Posted on January 5, 2018 by Dissent

A firm of loss adjusters has been fined £50,000 for unlawfully disclosing personal data which had been obtained illegally by senior employees and rogue private investigators.

A director and a senior member of staff at Kent-based Woodgate and Clark Ltd have also been sentenced to record financial penalties, along with the private investigators involved.

The case was part of an ongoing ICO investigation into allegations of a criminal trade in confidential personal information involving corporate clients suspected of using the services of rogue private investigators.

Elizabeth Denham, Information Commissioner, said:

“The illegal trade in personal information is not only a criminal offence but a serious erosion of the privacy rights of UK citizens.

“As well as these record fines, the organisations and individuals involved also face serious reputational damage as a result of being prosecuted by the ICO.”

The data subject involved in the case had made a claim on an insurance policy in relation to a fire at business premises he owned in Lancashire. The private investigators unlawfully obtained confidential financial information, including details of his banking transactions, and disclosed it to Woodgate and Clark Ltd, which then disclosed it to an insurer client.

A jury at Maidstone Crown Court had returned 15 guilty verdicts last month after the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) prosecuted the defendants under s55 of the Data Protection Act 1998. The following sentences – the highest ever imposed for these offences – were passed by the court today:

  • The company, Woodgate and Clark Ltd, was convicted of two counts of unlawfully disclosing personal data. It was fined £50,000 and was ordered to pay £20,000 costs .
  • Woodgate and Clark director Michael Woodgate, 67, of King Street, West Malling, Kent, was convicted on one charge of unlawfully obtaining personal data and two counts of unlawful disclosing personal data. He was fined £75,000 and was ordered to pay £20,000 costs.
  • Colum Tudball, 54, of Farriers Walk, Kingsnorth, Ashford, Kent, senior loss adjuster at Woodgate and Clark, was convicted on two charges of unlawfully obtaining personal data. He was fined £30,000 and was ordered to pay £20,000 costs.
  • Private investigator Daniel Summers, 38, of Pilgrim Close, Radyr, Cardiff, was convicted in his absence of two charges of unlawfully obtaining personal data and two counts of unlawfully disclosing personal data. He was fined £20,000 and was ordered to pay £20,000 costs.
  • Private investigator Adam John Spears, 78, of Pleasance Road North, Lydd on Sea, Kent, was convicted of two charges of unlawfully obtaining personal data and two counts of unlawfully disclosing personal data. He was fined £10,000 and was ordered to pay £2,500 costs.

The ICO’s investigation began in 2013 after the Serious Organised Crime Agency handed it a list of ‘blue chip’ clients of criminal private investigators.

Ms Denham added:

“Today’s sentencing hearing was part of a long, complex and detailed investigation by ICO staff and our work in this area continues.”

Source: Information Commissioner’s Office


Related:

  • Suspected XSS Forum Admin Arrested in Ukraine
  • PowerSchool commits to strengthened breach measures following engagement with the Privacy Commissioner of Canada
  • Hungarian police arrest suspect in cyberattacks on independent media
  • Two more entities have folded after ransomware attacks
  • British institutions to be banned from paying ransoms to Russian hackers
  • Data breach feared after cyberattack on AMEOS hospitals in Germany
Category: Breach IncidentsBusiness SectorNon-U.S.

Post navigation

← Former Island Health nurse suspended over privacy breach
Florida officials: Hack exposed 30K Medicaid patients’ files →

Now more than ever

"Stand with Ukraine:" above raised hands. The illustration is in blue and yellow, the colors of Ukraine's flag.

Search

Browse by Categories

Recent Posts

  • Scattered Spider Hijacks VMware ESXi to Deploy Ransomware on Critical U.S. Infrastructure
  • Hacker group “Silent Crow” claims responsibility for cyberattack on Russia’s Aeroflot
  • AIIMS ORBO Portal Vulnerability Exposing Sensitive Organ Donor Data Discovered by Researcher
  • Two Data Breaches in Three Years: McKenzie Health
  • Scattered Spider is running a VMware ESXi hacking spree
  • BreachForums — the one that went offline in April — reappears with a new founder/owner
  • Fans React After NASCAR Confirms Ransomware Breach
  • Allianz Life says ‘majority’ of customers’ personal data stolen in cyberattack (1)
  • Infinite Services notifying employees and patients of limited ransomware attack
  • The safe place for women to talk wasn’t so safe: hackers leak 13,000 user photos and IDs from the Tea app

No, You Can’t Buy a Post or an Interview

This site does not accept sponsored posts or link-back arrangements. Inquiries about either are ignored.

And despite what some trolls may try to claim: DataBreaches has never accepted even one dime to interview or report on anyone. Nor will DataBreaches ever pay anyone for data or to interview them.

Want to Get Our RSS Feed?

Grab it here:

https://databreaches.net/feed/

RSS Recent Posts on PogoWasRight.org

  • Congress tries to outlaw AI that jacks up prices based on what it knows about you
  • Microsoft’s controversial Recall feature is now blocked by Brave and AdGuard
  • Trump Administration Issues AI Action Plan and Series of AI Executive Orders
  • Indonesia asked to reassess data privacy terms in new U.S. trade deal
  • Meta Denies Tracking Menstrual Data in Flo Health Privacy Trial
  • Wikipedia seeks to shield contributors from UK law targeting online anonymity
  • British government reportedlu set to back down on secret iCloud backdoor after US pressure

Have a News Tip?

Email: Tips[at]DataBreaches.net

Signal: +1 516-776-7756

Contact Me

Email: info[at]databreaches.net

Mastodon: Infosec.Exchange/@PogoWasRight

Signal: +1 516-776-7756

DMCA Concern: dmca[at]databreaches.net
© 2009 – 2025 DataBreaches.net and DataBreaches LLC. All rights reserved.