Albania: 630,000 citizens’ personal data stolen to sell and accidentally leaked

The Albanian authorities arrested four people on charges of theft privacy – for example the salaries and numbers of their cars – more than 630,000 persons, which are then were posted on the Internet.

Two of those arrested are computer technicians who worked in the tax office the other two, the data buyers, work in the private sector, according to the Tirana prosecutor’s office.

“During our investigations we found that we do not face any breach of the systems but that some employees managed to steal the data in order to sell it to individuals,” the prosecutor explained. Elisabeth Imerai, in a press conference he gave in Tirana.

According to Reuters, the theft caused a stir in Albania after the data leaked by mistake in mid-December, the Albanians began sending each other files via WhatsApp, which contained various details.

Many were concerned when they found out various in salaries between officials of the same rank, both in the public and in the private sector, is relayed by APE BPE.

Prosecutors declined to say how the buyers would use the data and who the recipients were, explaining that their search continues.

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