The Consulting Association
This was a major news story that not only affected the lives of thousands of people within the construction industry, but attracted the attention of the public up and down the country.
It all began when we seized a covert database that contained details of construction industry workers - details that led to many people being blacklisted for unjust and trivial reasons.
Media attention
Our actions resulted in a front page exclusive in The Guardian, plus extensive coverage in other national, regional and online publications. Our spokespeople were also interviewed on BBC Breakfast, Radio Five Live, The Today Programme on Radio 4, BBC Scotland, BBC Manchester, BBC Wales, and BBC Hereford and Worcestershire. It even sparked follow-up opinion pieces and coverage in the Sunday papers.
Taking action
Here’s a summary of our press release on 6 March 2009 when the story broke:
"An investigation by the ICO has uncovered a database containing details on 3,213 construction workers, which was used by over 40 construction companies to vet individuals for employment. The information includes sensitive personal information such as construction workers’ personal relationships, trade union activity, as well as people’s employment history.
Ian Kerr, the owner of a firm known as The Consulting Association, appears to have run the database for over 15 years. The ICO has uncovered evidence that named construction firms subscribed to Kerr’s system for a £3,000 annual fee.
On raiding Mr Kerr’s business premises the ICO discovered an extensive operation involving household names in the construction industry. Mr Kerr is to cease trading by the end of this week and he now faces prosecution by the ICO for breaching the Data Protection Act. The ICO is also considering what regulatory action to take against construction firms who have been using the system. Trading people’s personal details in this way is unlawful and the ICO is determined to stamp out this type of activity."
Read our press releases in full.
Our people were involved in every aspect of this high profile case study of The Consulting Association.
