Data privacy: Sales agent’s ‘malicious behaviour’ costs Vodafone a massive $51.3 million fine

(Bloomberg) — Vodafone Group Plc was hit by a record €45 million ($51.3 million) data privacy fine in Germany over “malicious behavior” by third-party sales agents.

The actions of partner agencies that broker contracts to customers on behalf of Vodafone led to fraud, including fictitious contracts or term changes at the expense of clients, Louisa Specht-Riemenschneider, Germany’s federal data protection commissioner, said in a statement Tuesday.