Not sure if this goes under CRA or Data Protection, please move if required. I am working on an EU complaint with some others about what to me seems a breach of the data protection act or at least article 8 of the human right act regarding privacy rights. I have obtained company documents from a CRA (meant for their clients) that offer customers the opportunity to join what I will call a "club", when they join they agree to provide the data on their customers including monthly payments and an update of their address. In return they get some free access (depending on how much info they share) to CRA system. CRA then use that data to update alerts to debt collectors, information brokers and other clients. My initial concern about this was about PURPOSE, the monthly payments are NOT credit payments, but for a broadband service (with 4 million customers), they even provide this customer information if the client prepays a year upfront. If the purpose of the CRA is about CREDIT then it seems entirely WRONG to pass on this information. If it was an energy company I would have a problem if the client were paying on presentation of the bill but tolerate it if the client added an outstanding bill to a monthly payment system which is in effect credit. My next concern was that the broadband company provided no meaningful way for the customer to opt out of having their data shared, the only reference in the terms provided at the point of sale was that a customer may have an address check. There is a page on their website that says they share your data with CRA, it is very much a take it or leave it comment saying we do this for your own good. If this is taken to it's logical conclusion McDonalds could share that you bought a burger, Petrol stations could share your purchasing location and so on. I think we all should have a reasonable expectation of privacy that when trading with a company as a private individual. I had a chat with a lowly member of staff at the ICO and they suggested that the CRA's are given carte blanche by the ICO and that we have to "account for ourselves", my response was that we do IF we decide to participate in taking credit but not if we do not take credit. They suggested that I might want to complain to the EU commissioners or I could complain to them first but they have a history of not going near CRA's. SHOULD WE BE ENTITLED TO OPT OUT OF THE CREDIT REFERENCE SYSTEM OR AT LEAST CONTROL WHAT IS SHARED? It would seem that Article 8 of the Human Rights Act thinks we should! It talks about a PRIVATE LIFE... The concept of a right to a private life encompasses the importance of personal dignity and AUTONOMY and the interaction a person has with others, both in private or in public. The right to personal autonomy and physical and psychological integrity, respect for private and confidential information, particularly the storing and sharing of such information Respect for privacy when one has a reasonable expectation of privacy and the right to control the dissemination of information about one’s private life. It seems to me there is no autonomy (self-government) afforded to the consumer with regard to the storing and sharing of their information by these credit reference agencies. Especially for those that do not even take credit. I think WHO I TRADE WITH and HOW MUCH I PAY it is a very private thing, especially if I am not given a MEANINGFUL way to opt out and to me that means a tick box where I say “NO YOU MAY NOT SHARE MY DATA WITH ANYONE WITHOUT MY EXPRESS WRITTEN PER OCCASION PERMISSION.” I think this "club" should be totally illegal, it amounts to a data swap. It seems to me that the ICO themselves by not enforcing this are in Breach of Article 8 as well as both the company providing the information and the CRA sharing the information. I would be very grateful for comment from the members of this forum and any advice they may wish to provide.

Good day. I have an immigration issue that requires urgent assistance as I do not have money to use the services of professionals. I would be pleased for some assistance or quality ideas. My Case Background Eight years ago I came into the UK as a student. In the process I got married here four years ago having received Home Office approval. My partner is on discretionary leave and he is due to have his ILR in about 18 months time. We have established a family life together and we have a child of two years old. I made application to vary my student leave to under the Family and Private Life Article 8 as the money I was expecting for my tuition fees is being delayed until about December 2013 or January 2014. My college was not willing to sponsor an extension of my student visa without the fees completely paid. Hence the application I did so that my stay cannot be considered unlawful. So I made the application under Article 8 ground just in time before the visa expired. Decision of the Home Office My application for visa was refused but given right of appeal. The Home Office decided to consider my application under the partner route on their own accord and concluded that my husband cannot sponsor me through the partner route as he is on a discretionary leave to remain. They provided to me the failure category as E-LTRP 1.2. The Home Office also on their own accord considered my application through parent route and concluded that my child born here 2 years ago is not a British Citizen or not having ILR. They provided failure category of E-LTRPT 2.2. Then on my application for private and Family Life Article 8, the Home Office gave the following decision. "I have considered whether your application raises or contains exceptional circumstances under Article 8 which could warrant consideration by the Secretary of State outside the immigration rules. I have decided that it does not." Furthermore a decision to remove me from the UK was also made in accordance with s47 of the Immigration Asylum and Nationality Act 2006. Request I urgently require some generous help and assistance on possibly grounds of challenge to the First Tier Tribunal as time is now of the essence.