Data-nabbing consultant fined days before GDPR starts

A recruitment consultant who purloined data from his previous employer to kickstart his own business has been fined £1,090.

Daniel Short, who left his employer VetPro Recruitment in October 2017 to set up a rival business, VetSelect, was found guilty of stealing personal data from VetPro for his own commercial gain, following an investigation by the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) – the body in charge of enforcing GDPR.

Suspicions were first aroused when VetPro became aware of Short’s new consultancy, with questions raised regarding the integrity of the database it used to recruit vets and nurses.

The Devon-based agency then contacted Short to ask if he had downloaded any information from the database belonging to VetPro, to which he said yes, but only for his own record of achievement.