Three helpers warned for using bosses' data for loans
The Office of the Privacy Commissioner for Personal Data has issued warning letters to three foreign domestic helpers for misusing employers' personal data for loan applications without consent. Its announcement on Tuesday about the letters came after the watchdog received complaints from employers of the helpers. It said financial institutions contacted two of the complainants and requested them…
Three foreign domestic helpers have received warning letters from the Office of the Privacy Commissioner for Personal Data for unlawfully using their employers' personal data to apply for loans without consent. The watchdog announced the letters on Tuesday following complaints from the employers. Financial institutions had been contacting two of the complainants daily to remind them to settle their debts, while the third employer received overdue payment notices addressed to their helper.
One firm threatened to send a debt collector to an employer's home if repayments were not made by a deadline. All three helpers had been fired for failing to repay the loans and had admitted to giving their employers' personal information, including names, addresses, and phone numbers, to local and overseas lenders. One helper had applied for loans at four different financial institutions.
Privacy Commissioner Ada Chung stated that the migrant workers had violated the Personal Data (Privacy) Ordinance by using their employers' information for loan applications without permission. Chung assured that the workers understood the ordinance's requirements and agreed not to repeat the error in the future. The three are required to comply strictly with the ordinance, though they will not face prosecution as there must be evidence of criminal intent for a prosecution.
The watchdog urged employers to inform foreign domestic helpers that their personal data can only be used for employment-related matters and that they must obtain consent before using it for other purposes. The watchdog also prepared a pamphlet in Tagalog and Bahasa Indonesia to raise awareness among migrant workers about the proper use of employers' personal data.
Enhanced regulations on licensed money lenders, effective this month, aim to reduce complaints about the misuse of employers' data by foreign domestic helpers, as the new rules restrict money lenders' ability to request borrowers for loan referees. As of June 30, the watchdog recorded 14 inquiries and seven related complaints.
Written by urgent.news from RTHK News's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
