Two former RAC employees have been handed a suspended prison sentence and ordered to complete 150 hours of unpaid work, for unlawfully copying and selling over 29,500 lines of personal information.
Debbie Okparavero, 61, of Salford and Maliha Islam, 51, of Manchester, worked as customer service specialists at the RAC’s call centre in Stretford. Their unlawful conduct was discovered by, and reported to the ICO, the RAC after it installed new security monitoring software.
The software showed Okparavero had unlawfully accessed and copied personal information relating to people involved in road traffic accidents. A subsequent search of Okparavero’s mobile phone showed the information was shared in a WhatsApp chat with Islam. Messages indicated that a third party was paying for the information.
At a hearing at Minshull Street Crown Court on 8 October 2024, Okparavero and Islam were sentenced to 6 month prison sentences, suspended for 18 months, and each were ordered to complete 150 hours of unpaid work. Both defendants had previously pleaded guilty to offences under the Computer Misuse Act 1990 and Data Protection Act 2018. Prosecution costs will be considered at a Proceeds of Crime hearing listed for 5 March 2025.
Andy Curry, Head of ICO Investigations, said:
“Accessing people’s personal information when there isn’t a business need to do so is against the law. To then take steps to profit from other people’s misfortune by selling that information is appalling. We will always take action to protect the public from this type of unlawful behaviour.
“We would like to thank the RAC for their swift action in bringing this breach to our attention enabling us to ensure justice was served.”
Notes to editors
- The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) is the UK’s independent regulator for data protection and information rights law, upholding information rights in the public interest, promoting openness by public bodies and data privacy for individuals. It has its head office in Wilmslow, Cheshire, and regional offices in Edinburgh, Cardiff and Belfast.
- The ICO has specific responsibilities set out in the Data Protection Act 2018 (DPA2018), the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (FOIA), Environmental Information Regulations 2004 (EIR), Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations 2003 (PECR) and a further five Acts / Regulations.
- The ICO can take action to change the behaviour of organisations and individuals that collect, use and keep personal information. This includes criminal prosecution, non-criminal enforcement and audit.
- To report a concern to the ICO telephone our helpline 0303 123 1113 or go to ico.org.uk/concerns.