is this breach of data protection?

sithmaster

hi all, a bit of a long story, 2 years ago I had a Samsung contract phone stolen and was and am currently with o2
I called o2 to block the sim/ phone and this was done

today my mom has had a call from a stranger saying they have found a iPhone at a train station, after work I get a message on my landline from the same person with same message giving name and number
I call this person he says he has gone into a o2 shop to get assistance as he could not get any contacts to get the phone back to the correct owner.

o2 have got into the sim card (remember stolen) and given a complete stranger my landline and my moms mobile numbers to call us to return the phone

I believe the person has good intentions and has been honest but why would o2 give personal data out just like that?

timbo58

did this person have YOUR full name as well as the numbers?
Only a combination of data which could be used to 'personally identify you' can be construed as that protected under the DPA- AFAIAA?

sithmaster

timbo58 wrote: »

did this person have YOUR full name as well as the numbers?
Only a combination of data which could be used to 'personally identify you' can be construed as that protected under the DPA- AFAIAA?

no does not have my name just numbers now, im just shocked o2 would give personal numbers to a stranger
would it now have been better for o2 to call these numbers

Buzby

You've no proof they have done! How does a lost Samsung morph into an iPhone? Did you lose one? Even a blocked SIM can be read if the numbers stored in the SIM were not PIN protected - was yours?

sithmaster

Buzby wrote: »

You've no proof they have done! How does a lost Samsung morph into an iPhone? Did you lose one? Even a blocked SIM can be read if the numbers stored in the SIM were not PIN protected - was yours?

all I have is the persons word, it would not be a problem if he found them himself but he asked o2 to do it from what he told me,
someone could have just put the sim into a iphone

Techhead_2

sithmaster wrote: »

all I have is the persons word, it would not be a problem if he found them himself but he asked o2 to do it from what he told me,
someone could have just put the sim into a iphone

Hmm, why would someone have a two year old blocked SIM from a Samsung and put it in an IPhone? This iPhone is taken into an O2 store and rather than check the IMEI against their database (to return the phone to its owner) they decide to look at the numbers on the SIM and somehow manage to identify the SIM owners number and their mothers number.

Seems a pretty odd chain of events.

jc292

> Only a combination of data which could be used to 'personally identify you' can be construed as that protected under the DPA

^^ What they said