Latest news with #ComputerMisuseAct
ITV News
21 hours ago
- ITV News
Eight men to be sentenced for unlawfully obtaining personal data from vehicle repair garages
A man from Cheshire has been convicted of unlawfully obtaining people's personal information from vehicle repair garages to generate potential leads for personal injury claims. A jury at Bolton Crown Court found Craig Cornick, 40, of Prestbury, guilty of conspiracy to unlawfully obtain personal data contrary to the Data Protection Act. Seven other men from Cheshire and Greater Manchester had previously pleaded guilty to conspiracy to unlawfully obtain personal data. The Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) has welcomed the verdict at the end of a 10 week trial. During its investigation the the ICO seized the widest body of evidence it has ever seen, demonstrating the misuse of people's personal details to make nuisance calls to try and persuade people to make personal injury claims. Earlier in the month, the jury returned a not guilty verdict for Cornick and Thomas Daly, 35, of Macclesfield, for a charge of conspiracy to access computer systems without authority contrary to the Computer Misuse Act. Daly had previously pleaded guilty to two counts of conspiracy to unlawfully obtain personal data. Six other men had all previously pleaded guilty to the offences listed below: Vincent McCartan, 30, of Failsworth - pleaded guilty to conspiracy to unlawfully obtain personal data contrary to the Data Protection Act and conspiracy to secure unauthorised access to data held on computer systems contrary to the Computer Misuse Act. Ian Flanagan, 40, of Macclesfield - pleaded guilty to conspiracy to unlawfully obtain personal data contrary to the Data Protection Act and conspiracy to secure unauthorised access to data held on computer systems contrary to the Computer Misuse Act. Mark Preece, 44, of Manchester - pleaded guilty to conspiracy to unlawfully obtain personal data contrary to the Data Protection Act and conspiracy to secure unauthorised access to data held on computer systems contrary to the Computer Misuse Act. Kiernan Thorlby, 35, of Macclesfield - pleaded guilty to conspiracy to unlawfully obtain personal data contrary to the Data Protection Act and conspiracy to secure unauthorised access to data held on computer systems contrary to the Computer Misuse Act. Fahad Moktadir, 32, of Stockport - pleaded guilty to conspiracy to unlawfully obtain personal data contrary to the Data Protection Act. Adam Crompton, 35, of Northwich - pleaded guilty to two counts of conspiracy to unlawfully obtain personal data contrary to the Data Protection Act. The defendants were found to have conspired together between 2014 and 2017, where they accessed and obtained personal data of approximately one million people from vehicle repair garages without their consent. This data was then sold onto claims management firms hoping to generate potential leads for personal injury claims. The ICO has an ongoing second phase of its investigation and anticipates further prosecutions of people embedded into insurance companies and claims management companies with the sole aim of stealing personal data. After identifying the people involved, the ICO's investigations team conducted nine warrants in the Manchester and Macclesfield areas. The devices seized under search warrant contained 241,000 emails, 4.5 million documents, 144,000 spreadsheets, 1.5 million images and 83,000 multimedia files. ICO's Head of Investigations, Andy Curry, said: "Most of us have had nuisance calls asking if we've been in a crash. At best they're annoying but at worst they cause real upset and fear, especially to vulnerable people, and have a real impact on the businesses affected. "This case uncovered a vast, murky criminal network where crash details were stolen from garages across England, Scotland and Wales and traded to fuel distressing predatory calls. This has been an enormous and complex case which has seen ICO staff use both technical expertise and investigative skills to work tirelessly to track down those responsible and hold them accountable on behalf of the public." All the defendants are due to return to court on 11 July, where it Proceeds of Crime Act and cost issues will be discussed, with sentencing following at a later date.
New Paper
a day ago
- New Paper
Jail for woman who helped sister to obtain bank accounts, ATM cards for use in scams
Lured by the promise of money, a woman decided to take up her sister's offer to obtain bank accounts and cards in exchange for payment. Despite suspecting that the accounts would likely be used for illicit activities from the onset, Nguyen Lan Dung, 24, agreed to the arrangement. On June 19, the Vietnamese national was sentenced to 10 months' jail after pleading guilty to three charges under the Computer Misuse Act, and one under the Corruption, Drug Trafficking and Other Serious Crimes (Confiscation of Benefits) Act. Eleven charges of a similar nature were taken into consideration during the sentencing. Dung was also fined $1,700. Investigations revealed that after Dung agreed to the arrangement, she reached out to a man to say she knew people who would pay him for control of his bank account. Court documents do not reveal how investigations into Dung and her sister started. Sometime in March 2024, the man agreed and gave up his bank details and the corresponding physical ATM card. Dung handed over the card and login details to her sister and her sister's boyfriend, and was paid $700. Court documents stated that the man's bank account and ATM card were later found to be linked to extortion scams, and were used to transact a flow of scam proceeds. Under the arrangement, Dung would also act as the point of contact for other Vietnamese nationals who were willing to sell their bank accounts. She would earn between $500 and $700 for each bank account she helped to procure. Sometime in March 2024, she managed to obtain two different bank accounts from two Vietnamese nationals. Court documents do not reveal how Dung had managed to contact the two. Around the same period, Dung, along with her sister and her sister's boyfriend, arranged to sell 11 bank accounts to unknown persons. Dung's sister, Nguyen Huong Giang, remains on the run from Singapore.
Straits Times
20-06-2025
- Straits Times
Vietnamese woman helped sister sell bank accounts to scammers, earning up to $700 apiece
Despite suspecting that the accounts would likely be used for illicit activities from the onset, Nguyen Lan Dung agreed to the arrangement. Andrew Wong The Straits Times June 19, 2025 Lured by the promise of money, a woman decided to take up her sister's offer to obtain bank accounts and cards in exchange for payment. Despite suspecting that the accounts would likely be used for illicit activities from the onset, Nguyen Lan Dung, 24, agreed to the arrangement. On June 19, the Vietnamese national was sentenced to 10 months' jail after pleading guilty to three charges under the Computer Misuse Act, and one under the Corruption, Drug Trafficking and Other Serious Crimes (Confiscation of Benefits) Act. Eleven charges of a similar nature were taken into consideration during the sentencing. Dung was also fined $1,700. Investigations revealed that after Dung agreed to the arrangement, she reached out to a man to say she knew people who would pay him for control of his bank account. Court documents do not reveal how investigations into Dung and her sister started. Sometime in March 2024, the man agreed and gave up his bank details and the corresponding physical ATM card. Dung handed over the card and login details to her sister and her sister's boyfriend, and was paid $700. Court documents stated that the man's bank account and ATM card were later found to be linked to extortion scams, and were used to transact a flow of scam proceeds. Under the arrangement, Dung would also act as the point of contact for other Vietnamese nationals who were willing to sell their bank accounts. She would earn between $500 and $700 for each bank account she helped to procure. Sometime in March 2024, she managed to obtain two different bank accounts from two Vietnamese nationals. Court documents do not reveal how Dung had managed to contact the two. Around the same period, Dung, along with her sister and her sister's boyfriend, arranged to sell 11 bank accounts to unknown persons. Dung's sister, Nguyen Huong Giang, remains on the run from Singapore. Click here to contribute a story or submit it to our WhatsApp Get more of Stomp's latest updates by following us on:
Straits Times
19-06-2025
- Straits Times
Jail for woman who helped sister to obtain bank accounts, ATM cards for use in scams
Despite suspecting that the accounts would likely be used for illicit activities from the onset, Nguyen Lan Dung agreed to the arrangement. ST PHOTO: KELVIN CHNG Jail for woman who helped sister to obtain bank accounts, ATM cards for use in scams SINGAPORE – Lured by the promise of money, a woman decided to take up her sister's offer to obtain bank accounts and cards in exchange for payment. Despite suspecting that the accounts would likely be used for illicit activities from the onset, Nguyen Lan Dung, 24, agreed to the arrangement. On June 19, the Vietnamese national was sentenced to 10 months' jail after pleading guilty to three charges under the Computer Misuse Act, and one under the Corruption, Drug Trafficking and Other Serious Crimes (Confiscation of Benefits) Act. Eleven charges of a similar nature were taken into consideration during the sentencing. Dung was also fined $1,700. Investigations revealed that after Dung agreed to the arrangement, she reached out to a man to say she knew people who would pay him for control of his bank account. Court documents do not reveal how investigations into Dung and her sister started. Sometime in March 2024, the man agreed and gave up his bank details and the corresponding physical ATM card. Dung handed over the card and login details to her sister and her sister's boyfriend, and was paid $700. Court documents stated that the man's bank account and ATM card were later found to be linked to extortion scams, and were used to transact a flow of scam proceeds. Under the arrangement, Dung would also act as the point of contact for other Vietnamese nationals who were willing to sell their bank accounts. She would earn between $500 and $700 for each bank account she helped to procure. Sometime in March 2024, she managed to obtain two different bank accounts from two Vietnamese nationals. Court documents do not reveal how Dung had managed to contact the two. Around the same period, Dung, along with her sister and her sister's boyfriend, arranged to sell 11 bank accounts to unknown persons. Dung's sister, Nguyen Huong Giang, remains on the run from Singapore. Join ST's WhatsApp Channel and get the latest news and must-reads.
The Star
19-06-2025
- The Star
Jail for Vietnamese woman who helped sister to obtain bank accounts, ATM cards for use in scams
Despite suspecting that the accounts would likely be used for illicit activities from the onset, Nguyen Lan Dung agreed to the arrangement. - Photo: ST SINGAPORE: Lured by the promise of money, a woman decided to take up her sister's offer to obtain bank accounts and cards in exchange for payment. Despite suspecting that the accounts would likely be used for illicit activities from the onset, Nguyen Lan Dung, 24, agreed to the arrangement. On Thursday (June 19), the Vietnamese national was sentenced to 10 months' jail after pleading guilty to three charges under the Computer Misuse Act, and one under the Corruption, Drug Trafficking and Other Serious Crimes (Confiscation of Benefits) Act. Eleven charges of a similar nature were taken into consideration during the sentencing. Dung was also fined S$1,700. Investigations revealed that after Dung agreed to the arrangement, she reached out to a man to say she knew people who would pay him for control of his bank account. Court documents do not reveal how investigations into Dung and her sister started. Sometime in March 2024, the man agreed and gave up his bank details and the corresponding physical ATM card. Dung handed over the card and login details to her sister and her sister's boyfriend, and was paid $700. Court documents stated that the man's bank account and ATM card were later found to be linked to extortion scams, and were used to transact a flow of scam proceeds. Under the arrangement, Dung would also act as the point of contact for other Vietnamese nationals who were willing to sell their bank accounts. She would earn between $500 and $700 for each bank account she helped to procure. Sometime in March 2024, she managed to obtain two different bank accounts from two Vietnamese nationals. Court documents do not reveal how Dung had managed to contact the two. Around the same period, Dung, along with her sister and her sister's boyfriend, arranged to sell 11 bank accounts to unknown persons. Dung's sister, Nguyen Huong Giang, remains on the run from Singapore. - The Straits Times/ANN
