A former recruitment agency employee has been prosecuted and fined under section 55 of the Data Protection Act 1998 for unlawfully obtaining personal data. The defendant emailed the personal data of approximately 100 clients and potential clients to her personal email address as she was leaving to start a new role at a rival recruitment company. She then contacted those individuals in her new job.
The former employee pleaded guilty to the offence and was fined £200, ordered to pay costs of £214 and a victim surcharge of £30 at Warrington Magistrates' Court.