Solarplicity debt collection - - SCAM??

ZackMSE

Further to my post, I have just come of the phone with the ICO and they have suggested contacting CDS, BSD and raise a complaint with them and to also report it to Action Fraud. If I don't get a response from CDS, BSD then they have asked that I go back to them with in a few weeks. 

Sound to me like CDS, BSD have not reported themselves to the ICO at this stage.

ZackMSE

@becs1969 -
 Information Commissioner's Office

csm722

I too got this email.

Initially panicked, thought it was too detailed to be a scam, and it wasn't picked up as spam by my Gmail. 

I was a brilliant energy customer and definitely settled my bill, but I had the usual fear of fighting to prove it etc.....

Saw here that it is definitely a scam. Thanks to everyone that took the time to comment here.

SM2020

I also received an email this morning from ABD RECOVERY regarding a previous Brilliant Energy account.
Many thanks to those that have posted.

ZackMSE

If anyone seeing this has received this email then please report to the ICO, Action Fraud and sent a copy of the email to report@phishing.gov.uk

MMJCMM

Just received the same email about a debt from my brilliant energy account. I had spent an hour going for final bill - they seem to have found the last amount of the usage charged but not taken into account that the credits i paid were enough to cover it.  I was running through a facebook group on debts and bailiffs to see what I should do when i then searched for the company and found this forum.  Seems a lot of us are getting email so appears a breach of brilliant energy data.  I take it I now need do nothing.

MAN_UK

csm722 said:

I too got this email.

Initially panicked, thought it was too detailed to be a scam, and it wasn't picked up as spam by my Gmail. 

I was a brilliant energy customer and definitely settled my bill, but I had the usual fear of fighting to prove it etc.....

Saw here that it is definitely a scam. Thanks to everyone that took the time to comment here.

Hi yes agreed they appear to have a full database dump, which is the main worry in that what else the infomration can be used further down the line in time to come

Steve24741

I'm an ex Solarplicity customer who received the same debt request e-mail from Chloe Harrison at ABD Recovery yesterday evening with the 0208-058-6067 phone number that doesn't work. So generous of her to offer a 60% discount but I think I'll be holding out for 100%. E-mail forwarded to report@phishing.gov.uk.

MAN_UK

ok have contacted the ICO regarding the personally identifiable data breach contained in the scam email that myself along with others on here have received

Briefly by way of convenience for any new poster whose personally identifiable data is compromised in the scam email that they have received  

1: inform Police Action Fraud and get a crime number www .actionfraud.police.uk

2: according to the ICO guidance the concern needs to be formally registered with the organisation Barratt Smith & Brown (BSB) (the data handler) to give them the opportunity to investigate and respond

Note: the actual legal entity that was the data handler was CDS Global which was acquired by BSB

See links below for advice and guidance including sample template that containing the information that should be included in the registration for concern to BSB in the way personally identifiable (PI) data has been handled

Probably pertinent to include the fact the common denominator for the customer database breach of the three failed energy companies (Solarplicity, Northumbria Energy, Brilliant Energy) so far is the collection agency BSB (previously CDS global) appointed by different administrators.

3: raise a complaint to the ICO using the second link below outlining your concern for your own personally identifiable data and the risk of future nefarious use of this data in any future potential misdeeds such is identify fraud

ICO links

ico.org.uk/your-data-matters/raising-concerns/

ico.org.uk/make-a-complaint/your-personal-information-concerns/

Randolf_B

MAN_UK said:

ok have contacted the ICO regarding the personally identifiable data breach contained in the scam email that myself along with others on here have received

Briefly by way of convenience for any new poster whose personally identifiable data is compromised in the scam email that they have received  

1: inform Police Action Fraud and get a crime number www .actionfraud.police.uk

2: according to the ICO guidance the concern needs to be formally registered with the organisation Barratt Smith & Brown (BSB) (the data handler) to give them the opportunity to investigate and respond

Note: the actual legal entity that was the data handler was CDS Global which was acquired by BSB

See links below for advice and guidance including sample template that containing the information that should be included in the registration for concern to BSB in the way personally identifiable (PI) data has been handled

Probably pertinent to include the fact the common denominator for the customer database breach of the three failed energy companies (Solarplicity, Northumbria Energy, Brilliant Energy) so far is the collection agency BSB (previously CDS global) appointed by different administrators.

3: raise a complaint to the ICO using the second link below outlining your concern for your own personally identifiable data and the risk of future nefarious use of this data in any future potential misdeeds such is identify fraud

ICO links

ico.org.uk/your-data-matters/raising-concerns/

ico.org.uk/make-a-complaint/your-personal-information-concerns/

Very helpful guidance MAN_UK, thank you. We received an email from Chloe Harrison today. We were with Brilliant Energy and thankfully had kept full records of payments to close the account when they went into administration. The response from the ICO seems a bit limp; they should be hammering on doors to identify the breach, not leaving it to self-reporting and self-regulation. A letter to our MP is next. Presumably the sort code and account number won't necessarily lead to the perpetrators/scammers if these relate to some dodgy sort of account. A class action by everyone affected for a data breach would focus minds a bit.