YOUR PENSION SECRETS SOLD TO CONMEN FOR 5PENCE
On eve of pensions revolution, an exposé that will horrify every family in the land
HIGHLY sensitive details of the pension pots of millions are being sold for as little as 5p and ending up in the hands of criminals.
A Mail investigation reveals today how private financial information is being passed on by firms without their customers’ knowledge. This valuable data is then repeatedly sold on, ending up in the hands of fraudsters and cold-calling firms.
The troubling revelations come on the eve of major government reforms that will hand millions the chance to cash in their pension pots – giving them access to huge sums previously locked away. They will renew fears the reforms could trigger a flood of scams on the elderly and vulnerable whose newlyavailable funds will be rich pickings.
Last night the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) vowed to pass evidence uncovered by the Mail to police and began an immediate inquiry into the firms involved. A Cabinet minister praised the investigation and
promised action. The Mail’s undercover reporters targeted data firms, posing as a cold- calling company looking for people with pensions to whom they could sell investments.
We found some firms were willing to sell financial data on thousands of people without making any checks on what it would be used for.
A director of one firm – B2C Data – boasted he had access to the salaries, investments and pensions of ‘a million people’. The information he sold to the reporter includes details of the salary, pension pots and investments of 15,000.
Such information would be a godsend to criminals looking to exploit those approaching retirement.
When shown the evidence relating to B2C, Steve Eckersley, the head of enforcement at the ICO, said: ‘This is, on the face of it, a very worrying breach of the Data Protection Act, and we will be investigating the details further.’
When speaking to our undercover reporter, B2C director Nick Sayer lied, claiming the firm’s financial information was primarily obtained from financial advice firm Sesame.
Sesame categorically denies having
‘Absolutely horrifying’
any relationship with Sayer or B2C. Indeed, the company worked closely with the Mail and independent IT experts to examine the data given to our reporters. Those experts have since confirmed it was not from Sesame’s database.
There is now an urgent investigation underway to establish how the information was obtained by B2C.
When the Mail contacted some of the 15,000 on the database, they were horrified to hear their details had been sold and said they had never consented to the information being used in such a way. They revealed that they had been inundated with cold calls from conmen who seemed to know their highly sensitive personal information.
One said he had been targeted by callers who seem to ‘know more about my life than I do.’ Others have been plagued by up to five calls a day.
Experts have warned that the pension reforms that come in on April 6 – which will see millions given access to their life savings and the ability to use their pension pots like a cash machine – could result in scams on a massive scale.
The ICO fear it could turn into ‘ the next PPI scandal.’ Jane Vass, of Age UK, warned that rogue builders and other crooks were ‘circling’ around those with pensions. The Mail i nvestigation showed that some data firms see anyone with a pension as a ripe target.
Bosses of one company approached by a Mail undercover reporter revealed they were marketing completely unregulated high-risk investments to pensioners and investors – and even asked if she and her call centre could help.
David Billington at Targeted Response Direct Limited offered the reporter £500 for every pensioner she could persuade to sink £20,000 or more into the investments – which he called a ‘lovely product’ but which experts consulted by the Mail said was ‘a recipe for dis- aster’. The firm also offered, for £1.50 a time, to sell the names of any pensioners who had revealed they had got a ‘frozen or private pension’ in a survey.
Ros Altmann, a pensions expert and government adviser, said the evidence uncovered by the Mail was ‘absolutely horrifying’ and called for harsher punishments for firms that breached the Data Protection Act.
At the ICO, Mr Eckersley said ‘What the Daily Mail has shown us today is very worrying indeed. It suggests a frequent disregard of laws that are in place specifically to protect consumers. We will be launching an investigation immediately.’
Culture Secretary Sajid Javid said: ‘The Daily Mail’s investigation has uncovered a matter of serious concern. Targeting people who have saved and done the right thing all their lives is abhorrent. We will follow the ICO’s investigation closely and will not fail to take the necessary action.’
All the firms the Mail investigated denied any wrongdoing.
B2C Data Ltd said it abided by all the proper laws and regulations of its industry.
David Billington of Targeted Response Direct Ltd said he was ‘simply introducing’ our reporter ‘to a company who could help them grow their business with a quality product that had already achieved success’. He added that his company always acted ‘within the rules and regulations of our industry’.