Octopus plea to watchdog chief
A man claiming compensation from Octopus over its sale of customers' personal data wants to call the privacy commissioner to testify for him after the card issuer rejected a report by the commissioner that found it violated data protection rules.
Wong Wing-kit, 28, said he intended to call Allan Chiang Yam-wang in the Small Claims Tribunal after an Octopus Holdings representative disagreed with the a privacy commissioner's report that found subsidiary Octopus Rewards had violated three principles.
The October report found that personal data of more than one million Octopus cardholders was sold to business partners, including two insurance companies that tried to sell policies to Wong, for HK$57.9 million without consent over eight years.
Wong is seeking HK$50 for his injured feelings.
Adjudicator Grace Chan Yuk-fan said that under existing privacy laws the commissioner's report alone could not be used as evidence in support of the claim and Wong would have to call witnesses.
The Octopus representative also challenged the report's finding that Octopus Holdings was a principal of Octopus Rewards and that it was therefore liable for the actions of its subsidiary.
The company plans to call Octopus Holdings company secretary Maria Tong and a sales and marketing officer from Octopus Rewards to give evidence.
Octopus, which is still considering whether to seek a judicial review of the commissioner's report, was told to inform the tribunal of its decision at the next hearing.
The case proceeded after Octopus refused to settle out of court yesterday although Wong said he was willing to do so on condition that it paid him HK$50. The case was adjourned to March 28.
