Hacking could cost Spanish Big Brother $4m
Published: 25 Aug 2000 15:24 BST
The Spanish version of Big Brother could be fined up to $4m after a hacker broke into its server and posted personal details of applicants on a fanclub Web site.
The details were meant to remain undisclosed and included the contestants' credit rating, IQ and medical history.
Organisers of the show could face a $4m fine for breaching European laws governing privacy, in addition to a flood of lawsuits from up to 1,700 applicants. "Any organisation that collects and inadvertently makes available personal information on the Internet is likely to be in breach of the Data Protection Act, making them liable to compensation claims and also reputational risk," says Phil Jones, assistant commissioner to the Data Protection Commissioner.
UK companies PowerGen and Barclays were recently held responsible for two of the biggest online security breaches in the UK so far. The companies posted addresses and credit card information of customers on their Web sites. BT also published user data on its Web site after signing up to its ADSL service. "If a company such as Barclays can get it wrong, there is a real need for other companies to not rush into using new technology without properly checking that security measures are robust," warns Jones.
The Big Brother Web site in the UK has already been hit by a series of hacking attempts. Morgan Holt, editor of Big Brother, is adamant that "we don't have any confidential information stored on our server -- I'd be worried about people accessing private medical information from anyone's computer". Channel Four received detailed applications from thousands of feisty hopefuls, but Holt is keen to point out that "all of this information only exists on paper".
"Media companies are particularly sensitive to breaches of privacy, as they are always the first ones to make a big deal of the failings of others," argues Jones. He believes that today's impatience for getting online must be tempered with robust security devices to protect the personal details of individuals.
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