UK bank details reported for sale on web

Britain's Information Commissioner has begun an investigation after thousands of Britons' bank details were found for sale on the internet, it has been reported.

More than 100 web sites are offering UK bank details, including account numbers, and PINs and security codes were found, the Timessaid.

One was offering to sell 30,000 British credit card numbers for £1 each, and a reporter was able to download banking information for 32 individuals, including a High Court judge, for free.

A spokesman for the Information Commissioner said the data on offer appeared to be for accounts that were active.

"From what I have seen the information would be enough for someone to go online and spend money, but at this stage there is no way of knowing which cards are on there," he said.

"Clearly it's a matter of concern if people's personal banking details, which should remain private, are on a public website.

He said the investigation would initially focus on what security breach, if any, had taken place to allow the information to get into the public domain.

But one concern with the revelations is that the websites involved may be based overseas, which would put them beyond the Information Commissioner's remit.

Payments industry body APACS said there was not enough information on the websites to enable a fraudster to access people's bank accounts as they would need personal information such as passwords to do this.

A spokeswoman said: "It's not the first time that this kind of website has come to light and often when we do look at the details they are out of date or there isn't enough information for someone to perpetrate a fraud."

But she added that the information was still potentially useful to an identity fraudster.

She added that there was no evidence that a fraud had been committed but urged consumers to remain vigilant and to check their bank statements for unauthorised transactions and to monitor their credit references regularly.

"In the UK we have a lot of systems in place to monitor UK websites, what we do not have is a UK-based law enforcement agency with a global remit."

Additional reporting: PA