Print this page
Published in News

Research firm denies giving mobile details to cops

by on14 May 2013

Sunday Times could be in trouble

Research outfit Ipsos Mori has denied trying to flog identifying details for 27 million EE mobile phone users to the UK cops. The Sunday Times reported that the firm offered EE call and text data to the police, and the paper said that the law withdrew from the deal once word of the sale leaked.

London’s Met police confirmed that meetings had taken place, but said that it was not buying the data, adding that it didn't want it anyway. If you believe the Times, Ipsos Mori has been shopping the records around and bragging that the data can be used to track people and their location in real time to within 100 metres.

But Ipsos Mori said that it is not trying to sell any personal information, and in tweeted messages its CEO Ben Page said it was rubbish about being able to pinpoint personal placement as there was nothing to identify anyone.

"In response to the article published today (Sunday 12th May 2013) by the Sunday Times, Ipsos Mori absolutely refutes the suggestion that it is offering access to individual personal data for sale," said a statement posted to the research firm's website. "In the cutting edge research that Ipsos MORI is doing with EE, the UK's largest mobile operator, our mobile analytics explore user volume, demographics and mobile web use from anonymised and aggregated groups of people. In conducting this research we only receive anonymised data without any personally identifiable information. We have taken every care to ensure it is being carried out in compliance with all relevant legal and regulatory requirements."

We guess that if the Sunday Times is that wrong then Ipso will have to do some serious complaining.

Rate this item
(0 votes)