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Watchdog investigates porn-sharing leak claims
Source: Agencies |
September 28, 2010, Tuesday
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BRITAIN'S privacy watchdog said yesterday it will investigate reports that hackers broke into a law firm's computers and leaked the details of thousands of Sky broadband customers alleged to have shared pornographic films.
The Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) said it would check whether London-based ACS:Law breached the Data Protection Act by failing to protect its servers. Companies found guilty under the act can be fined up to 500,000 pounds.
"Any organisation processing personal data must ensure that it is kept safe and secure," the watchdog said. "This is an important principle of the Act. The ICO will be contacting ACS:Law to establish further facts of the case and to identify what action, if any, needs to be taken."
ACS:Law specialises in music and film copyright cases, sending tens of thousands of letters to internet users suspected of illegally sharing files.
The company gathers IP addresses -- a computer's unique number when accessing the internet -- of people suspected of breaching copyright laws. It then asks internet service providers to give them their home addresses.
Hackers opposed to the law firm's anti-piracy work are thought to be behind the leak, according to the BBC.
Sky Broadband, part of Rupert Murdoch's pay-TV group BSkyB, said it believed the leaked data included the names and addresses of about 4,000 Sky customers.
"We are very concerned at the apparent security breach involving data held by ACS:Law," the company said in a statement. "Like other broadband providers, Sky can be required by court order to disclose information about customers whose accounts are alleged to have been used for illegal downloading.
"We only ever provide such data in encrypted form and we never disclosed credit card or bank details to ACS:Law."
The law firm declined to comment. However, its head Andrew Crossley was quoted by the BBC as saying that his company had been subject to a "criminal attack".
Privacy International, a campaign group, said the data breach could expose people named on the list to fraud.
The Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) said it would check whether London-based ACS:Law breached the Data Protection Act by failing to protect its servers. Companies found guilty under the act can be fined up to 500,000 pounds.
"Any organisation processing personal data must ensure that it is kept safe and secure," the watchdog said. "This is an important principle of the Act. The ICO will be contacting ACS:Law to establish further facts of the case and to identify what action, if any, needs to be taken."
ACS:Law specialises in music and film copyright cases, sending tens of thousands of letters to internet users suspected of illegally sharing files.
The company gathers IP addresses -- a computer's unique number when accessing the internet -- of people suspected of breaching copyright laws. It then asks internet service providers to give them their home addresses.
Hackers opposed to the law firm's anti-piracy work are thought to be behind the leak, according to the BBC.
Sky Broadband, part of Rupert Murdoch's pay-TV group BSkyB, said it believed the leaked data included the names and addresses of about 4,000 Sky customers.
"We are very concerned at the apparent security breach involving data held by ACS:Law," the company said in a statement. "Like other broadband providers, Sky can be required by court order to disclose information about customers whose accounts are alleged to have been used for illegal downloading.
"We only ever provide such data in encrypted form and we never disclosed credit card or bank details to ACS:Law."
The law firm declined to comment. However, its head Andrew Crossley was quoted by the BBC as saying that his company had been subject to a "criminal attack".
Privacy International, a campaign group, said the data breach could expose people named on the list to fraud.
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