O2 customers data loss?

[Anonymous]

http://www.ukbusinessforums.co.uk/threads/million-email-addresses.329182/

'Hello,

What can you do with a million email addresses to make with it money? Any idea?

kind regards
jb' 

'Thanks for response,

but what do you mean "what sort of email addresses" ?

100% of the email owners:

• is UK residents
• is 18+ (but not DOB)
• gave his sex
• has or had contract with O2 in last 24months '

[MI5]

So, nothing official in response from O2 ?

[Anonymous]

(1) How likely is it that anyone who has managed to purloin 1,000,000 email addresses from an organistaion like O2 is going to advertise the fact.  

(2) If he has to ask for ideas as to how to make money out of it why would he have gone to the bother of stealing the data in the first place?   Does not make a lot of sense (says me who does not have a lot of sense).

Is this not the sort of story that is best kept quiet unless and until adequate and reliable information is a available instead of putting the wind up (if that is a rude expression I apologise) the vast majority of users who don't fully understand the implications.

Gerry

[jonsie]

It just doesn't ring true to me.

[Anonymous]

These are the questions I asked myself - it all looks a bit OTT to me, nevertheless -

a. 'Personal data shall be obtained only for one or more specified and lawful purposes, and shall not be further processed in any manner incompatible with that purpose or those purposes.'

b. Personal data processed for any purpose or purposes shall not be kept for longer than is necessary for that purpose or those purposes.

I assume in this case the guy has no purpose for the data he's having, so he shouldn't have it, even if it's a 'for marketing use' database.

[MI5]

You're correct, he shouldn't have the data but by now he's probably found a way to sell it on anyway.
All I can see, from what he's said, is that he has a list of live email addresses.
Hardly a major threat except to annoy all those people with spam emails.

[Toby]

Hi guys,

Leave this with me please.

Thank you Maria for flagging this to me.

[Anonymous]

More interesting is how he got hold of these data, considering that he's clueless about his next steps. And what sort of data will be leaked next... 

Yep, eBay case made me paranoid.