Reverse mobile number lookups - privacy issues
I have noticed an increasing number of methods to find out someone's full name from their mobile number.
One of the most obvious is Facebook on a smartphone. Smartphones can sync their address books with Facebook to harvest further data about each contact, eg their full name and photo, and then populate that data from Facebook back into the smartphone's address book.
A new method has been launched today, Barclays Pingit. You register your name, mobile number, sortcode and account number with Barclays so that any payments sent to your mobile number are then automatically received into your bank account (at any bank). When a Barclays customer enters a new payment instruction with a destination mobile number, the recipient's full name is divulged by the Pingit app to the Barclays customer. This makes it possible to do a reverse mobile number lookup and see someone's full name without even sending a payment.
There are plenty of good reasons why someone would not want their surname to be discoverable from their mobile number. One example is online dating, where people exchange mobile numbers in order to have lengthy phone conversations before meeting in person. Because of the typical length of those conversations, it's not cost-effective to use a PAYG SIM instead. I can also think of many illegal purposes why reverse lookup facilities might be useful to criminals.
How many other methods exist and why are these large companies not protecting people's privacy?
One of the most obvious is Facebook on a smartphone. Smartphones can sync their address books with Facebook to harvest further data about each contact, eg their full name and photo, and then populate that data from Facebook back into the smartphone's address book.
A new method has been launched today, Barclays Pingit. You register your name, mobile number, sortcode and account number with Barclays so that any payments sent to your mobile number are then automatically received into your bank account (at any bank). When a Barclays customer enters a new payment instruction with a destination mobile number, the recipient's full name is divulged by the Pingit app to the Barclays customer. This makes it possible to do a reverse mobile number lookup and see someone's full name without even sending a payment.
There are plenty of good reasons why someone would not want their surname to be discoverable from their mobile number. One example is online dating, where people exchange mobile numbers in order to have lengthy phone conversations before meeting in person. Because of the typical length of those conversations, it's not cost-effective to use a PAYG SIM instead. I can also think of many illegal purposes why reverse lookup facilities might be useful to criminals.
How many other methods exist and why are these large companies not protecting people's privacy?
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Comments
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I have been receiving payment from my mobile phone number for the last 3 years, using PayPal. The scheme from Barclays is simply them playing catch-up, but I'm not clear why you feel there is a privacy issue of any real concern. The fact that someone has a bank account is no mystery, the chances are 95% of the public do. Since a mobile number (complete with +44 country code) is unique and used to confim credits and debits, and has the ability to be deregistered when lost, provides a greater amount of security to the user. A mobile phone number and name will not permit a debit (only a credit).
Of greater concern is how anyone can, on being given a name and Sord A/c number can set up a DD and remove funds simply by saying the payee agreed - no signature, no approval or checks, nothing at all.
Reverse lookup services have also been available for years, where London streets were listed and the telephone numbers for each address shown. THis is of course not publically available, but it exists nevertheless.
As to criminality. Everything under the sun is 'of use to criminals' does that mean we have to ban them because of this? I think not, you simply make their deviousness a disincentive when caught.0 -
You're right. I tried to send a test payment to my mother, and her name appeared in full unlike how her name is saved in my iPhone's contacts.A new method has been launched today, Barclays Pingit. You register your name, mobile number, sortcode and account number with Barclays so that any payments sent to your mobile number are then automatically received into your bank account (at any bank). When a Barclays customer enters a new payment instruction with a destination mobile number, the recipient's full name is divulged by the Pingit app to the Barclays customer. This makes it possible to do a reverse mobile number lookup and see someone's full name without even sending a payment.
This kind of facility is becoming more prevalent everywhere. I registered a .tel domain a while ago and entered a lot of my contact details. I don't mind registering my mobile number in all kinds of directories such as this so that people can contact me. However, I then discovered that if someone enters my mobile number in international format into Google, my .tel entry returns my full name as the only result. This is because Telnic have not implemented a robots.txt file in the root directory of my hostname and there's no way I can add one.0 -
The fact that someone has a bank account is no mystery, the chances are 95% of the public do. Since a mobile number (complete with +44 country code) is unique and used to confim credits and debits, and has the ability to be deregistered when lost, provides a greater amount of security to the user. A mobile phone number and name will not permit a debit (only a credit).
Of greater concern is how anyone can, on being given a name and Sord A/c number can set up a DD and remove funds simply by saying the payee agreed - no signature, no approval or checks, nothing at all.
All this completely misses the point. The issue is not about security but about privacy. It's not right that Barclays (even if I'm not their customer) are providing an open facility for people to look up my full name from my mobile number!0 -
Can people tell me about any other services that allow reverse lookups on mobile numbers? I must be registered on hundreds of web sites and I want to make sure my privacy is not infringed by anyone else.0
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...A new method has been launched today, Barclays Pingit. You register your name, mobile number, sortcode and account number with Barclays so that any payments sent to your mobile number are then automatically received into your bank account (at any bank)...All this completely misses the point. The issue is not about security but about privacy. It's not right that Barclays (even if I'm not their customer) are providing an open facility for people to look up my full name from my mobile number!
Am I missing somthing here? No one is forcing you to register for the Pingit service. If you don't want people to be able to look you up on it, don't register.0
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