I Have Stolen Data

[mingle123]

Hi there,

I've stolen 45 contacts from my previous employers - I have then given these contacts to a small insurance broker. I have admitted to my ex employers solicitor what i've done, and all information has been deleted etc. I've apologised and said i will do anything it takes to get this dropped as im of to university in September,

What is the possible outcome? The data stolen, was information about companies and when their insurance renews. Some of which was already available on-line.

Please let me know whatever the outcome is as i would prefer to prepare myself.

[boxtops]

Oh dear. Are they prosecuting you? This is potentially serious stuff - if nothing else, they won't give you a reference for a future employer.

[Retrochic]

you should not have admitted anything,it was up to them to prove you did it. Insurance renews -well its hardly going to hinder world peace is it. Who knows what the outcome will be - are they prosecuting you? What evidence (other than your 'admittance' have they got?

[mingle123]

@Boxtops - No they are not - their solicitor has emailed me explaining i need to tell them who i gave the information too and an undertaking which basically says ill never do this again.

Dont think ill be getting a reference at all........

At the end of the day no one has lost anything, its more the principle that i've taken data which wasnt mine.

They dont have any other evidence a part from me admitting it

[Retrochic]

you do not 'need' to give them anything -as you have burned your bridge with regard to referencing etc I would just ignore them completely and get on withyour life.

[NoMercy]

I think retro means "admission"

[mingle123]

Thanks for the help guys! Bit stupid of me to originally take the data but no one has lost out or been hurt etc.

[Retrochic]

nom -thank you so much for your grammatical correction - regardless of the fact English is not my 'langue maternelle' I have no excuse other than really I can't be arrassed (work that one out dear)and was actually trying to helpo the OP rather than verbally abusing a fellor Ab'er.
Each to their own if you feel the need to 'Chier une pendule ' over spelling mistakes go for it -you must not have much else to do .

[Peter Pedant]

Hi mingle -calm yourself

The solicitor has said they arent gonna bring any criminal charges. so you can breathe over that. When at uni read up about the johari window model
http://www.businessballs.com/johariwindowmodel.htm

it (JH window) boils down here to: 'you dont know all that the employer has done ....' Like the employer may have already complained to the Police who have shown no interest at all in it ....

From the civil law point of view - cases are brought on loss. There doesnt seem to be any loss in this case ( loss of custom ) that is if the 45 contacts have said to your employer " Mr Employer, we will neva leave you " then there is no loss, no consequential loss and nothing for them to claim.

I suppose they could claim for the solicitors time - I have never heard that occurring. You should also stress you are penniless. Lawyers dont go after people who have no moolah. You could resist that on the grounds there is no loss and thus no consequential loss. You are what they call a man of straw

what about a claim for £500k for the employer's wife's headacne ? is not a head of claim that is allowable ( nor a charge for dog sitting the dog )

so basically wait .....

now what you can do usefully is
a) think about reading Law at uni
b) read about the Johari window
c) write a reflective essay for your own needs about why it was stupid ( data theft is wrong ) and why you are not gonna behave like a dockhead again - ever. This should involve an analysis on how you got found out ( no dont tell us ) . I imagine that one of the 45 contacts was approached by the small insurance broker who when questioned by your employer said happily " oh m123 gave me the names - I took them in good faith "

so you can learn from this - big time

as for the consequences - wait and see

they may well be less than you fear
( and better than you hope )

[FrogNog]

People do lose out when you steal data mingle.
Please don't think what you've done is okay. It's not.

[Peter Pedant]

// Thanks for the help guys! Bit stupid of me to originally take the data but no one has lost out or been hurt etc.//

so ergo no claim in civil law mingo

[ ignore the possy comments ABers make to each other
the rest of us do
Retrochic has a point - you need advice and not point-scoring on grammar ]

[Retrochic]

no one is saying its ok -just its not the end of the world. Lots of ex workers do it -its not right but its not something to worry over.

[Peter Pedant]

good point from Retro.

you will learn a sense of proportion as you get older, mingo
I thought I had libelled an old professor when I was 23 ( I hadnt it was all true ) and went thro a reaction such as yours. I have made sure what I say about people in public is true since then

[237SJ]

I don`t know how it works when an ex-employee breaches the data protection act. I only know how the data protection act affects companies as to how they use customers` data. If a company employee breaches the data protection act, they can be liable for a fine and custodial sentence. Hopefully, this won`t be the case with you.

[Peter Pedant]

// I don`t know how it works when an ex-employee breaches the data protection act. If a company employee breaches the data protection act, they can be liable for a fine and custodial sentence. //

I do
It works like *** - I was asked to delete all my ex employers data and gave a confirmation that I had. He has absolutely no come-back on whether I have or not. - because none of the data has escaped, and er of course I did.

The builders' black list case is the only time I can recollect the Information Commissioner got a warrant to search -and that took three to five years.

I would kick off by saying the Data Protection act doesnt apply
and that mingo has correctly not registered under it and so he can lawfully tell the OIC to "sad off saddo!" should they come calling

[Baldric]

///They don't have any other evidence apart from me admitting it ///

Tbh, I don't think they would need anything else!

[237SJ]

PP "I was asked to delete all my ex employers data" That was your employers data. It wasn`t a customer`s data. If you breach a customer`s data (I can`t remember the exact details) but 6 months custodial sentance and an £11,000 fine rings a bell..

[mingle123]

Peter - Thank you for your response, at 20 being charged with a criminal offence is not what i want! I've just had an email from my ex employers solicitor saying " Your letter with the undertakings, will also need to separately say exactly what you took, how, when and what you did with it.

It will also need to say what you said to (** Insurance broker i gave it too**) and what you gave them.

This is vital"

What shall i reply?

The solicitor already knows im penniless as he advised me to get a solicitor, and i mentioned i couldnt afford one, i literally have £20 to my name!

[mingle123]

That's exactly what i've done i havent lied and ive accepted what i've done. Does anyone know what the potential outcome would be? penalty? Jail term? etc - Because i literally dont have a clue what will happen if my ex employers want to take it to court..
Will it cost them a lot of money and time to take it to court?