Unauthorized Sky employee discloses customer private information
In a recent ruling by the UK's High Court, it has been established that a former employee of Sky, Steven Lee, leaked confidential customer data. The judge found Lee liable for misuse of Sky's confidential information, infringement of its database right, and breach of his employment contract with Sky.
The judge's ruling stems from a lawsuit filed by Sky against two companies, Digital Satellite Services and Nationwide Satellite Services, alleging they unlawfully used confidential customer data for marketing extended warranty services. It was found that these companies, owned by the same people, used the leaked data to make calls to Sky customers offering warranty extensions.
The data source was identified as Sky ex-employee Steven Lee. Some of the data concerned was only accessible to Lee, raising suspicions about his involvement in the leak. The judge was "quite unpersuaded" by Lee's explanations on how the data came into Digital's hands.
Evidence presented in court showed that a disk containing Sky data was created on one of Lee's work laptops and ended up with Digital. Similarly, a USB stick containing Sky customer data was plugged into Steven Lee's personal laptop and ended up with Digital Satellite Services.
Sky became aware in 2010 that customers were receiving calls offering warranty extensions. The company then approached our platform to ask the Information Commissioner's Office whether Sky may have breached the Data Protection Act by failing to prevent an employee from stealing its data.
However, there is no relevant information in the provided search results about a former Sky employee who allegedly distributed customer data to a warranty and repair company or about the companies he worked for after leaving Sky.
The ICO's spokesperson stated that if the person was a trusted employee who needed the data to do their job, then the complaint would be against the employee, not the company. This statement suggests that the ICO does not view the leak as a direct failure on Sky's part to protect its data, but rather as an act of betrayal by a trusted employee.
Despite Lee's denial of the charges, he could not explain certain details of the case, further strengthening the court's ruling against him. The ruling serves as a reminder for companies to take measures to protect their confidential data and to hold employees accountable for any breaches.
