How to get your data from comparethemarket.com

Davey Winder Read more February 21, 2011

You might not consider an insurance comparison site much of a threat to your privacy, but when you consider that to provide a quote Comparethemarket may have to collect data defined as “sensitive” by the Data Protection Act – such as a medical history or criminal record, as well as the mundane name, address, telephone number and employment details – the cause for concern becomes more apparent.

How to get your data from comparethemarket.com

Throw in how easy it is for anyone to access this data using the “retrieve quote” system and the privacy goosebumps start appearing.

Find out what information is held about you by hitting the “retrieve my quote” link and entering, wait for it, your email address, surname and date of birth.

Yes, that’s all it takes for anyone to access your personal information at Comparethemarket.com, despite PC Pro exposing this gaping privacy hole more than three months ago.

How to reclaim your data

Follow the quote retrieval procedure and then click on the “update your details” link.

If you haven’t visited the site for a while you’ll be met with a pop-up advising that you update your details to ensure competitive insurance quotes can be provided.

We advise you change them to something completely fake, so that nobody else can use them for nefarious purposes.

While it’s relatively easy for other people to get your personal data out of Comparethemarket, removing your own isn’t so simples.

You can write (as in an old-fashioned letter rather than a more convenient email) to the Data Protection Officer at BISL Limited, Pegasus House, Bakewell Road, Orton Southgate, Peterborough PE2 6YS to formally request the removal of personal information from Comparethemarket.com records.

Make sure you include your full name, address and date of birth in the letter, or it won’t be deleted.