press@loopline.org.uk

A Pattern of Disruptions: Worldline Under Fire Again

MILAN, Nov 29 – French digital payments giant Worldline has announced a return to normalcy for its services following significant disruptions caused by accidental damage to its network during gas pipeline installations in Italy. The incident, which began Thursday morning, left businesses and consumers grappling with payment challenges at the height of Black Friday shopping. The […]

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Klarna Chooses New York for IPO Amid Challenging Market Condition

Swedish fintech giant Klarna, known for its “buy now, pay later” (BNPL) service, has announced plans to list on the New York Stock Exchange, bypassing London for its highly anticipated initial public offering (IPO). This decision marks another significant missed opportunity for the London Stock Exchange (LSE), which has struggled recently to attract high-profile tech

Klarna Chooses New York for IPO Amid Challenging Market Condition Read More »

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Lunu Pay and Ingenico Partner to Enable Crypto Payments in Retail Stores

Lunu Pay, a leader in Web3 payment technology, has teamed up with Ingenico, a global powerhouse in payment solutions, to launch cryptocurrency payment capabilities for physical retailers. Through this collaboration, Ingenico’s Android-based POS terminals now support a wide array of cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin, Ethereum, and USDT, as well as integration with over 70 crypto wallets

Lunu Pay and Ingenico Partner to Enable Crypto Payments in Retail Stores Read More »

£2M Investment from Ooodles to Drive Irish Tech Innovation

Ooodles, a London-based fintech startup specializing in flexible IT equipment rentals for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), has announced its first international expansion into Ireland. This move is supported by a new £2 million funding round led by āltitude VC, Europe’s premier technology fund for SMEs, along with backing from existing investors, including Traditum. With

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Turning the Page – HMV Hits New Chapter with Oxford Street Book Floor

In a bold move to diversify its retail offerings, HMV has announced the opening of a dedicated book section at its flagship Oxford Street location, marking a significant expansion into literature. This new space, the “HMV 363 Bookshop,” is set to open on November 18, just in time for the holiday season, and will feature

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Adyen Highlights Resilience in Digital Evolution Amid Slower Transaction Growth

Dutch payments leader Adyen faced a share price dip on November 7 after revealing a moderated growth rate in its Q3 transaction volumes. Despite this, Adyen reported a year-over-year revenue increase of €498.3 million (approximately $538.7 million), marking a 21% rise compared to the previous year. However, investors appeared focused on the softened transaction volume

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Worldline’s Q3 2024 Results – Resilience and Strategic Growth Amidst Challenges

Worldline, the European payments giant, recently released its Q3 2024 results, painting a picture of resilience and strategic focus amidst a challenging economic landscape. Looming on the horizon is an appeal hearing scheduled for 21 November 2024, in a case that could shed light on Worldline subsidiary, Payone’s attempts to suppress allegations of wrongdoing. This

Worldline’s Q3 2024 Results – Resilience and Strategic Growth Amidst Challenges Read More »

Visa and USAID Partner to Expand Digital Government Systems and Financial Inclusion

Visa and USAID have announced a strategic collaboration aimed at increasing access to digital government systems and enhancing financial inclusion in developing regions. This partnership will combine Visa’s payments expertise with USAID’s development mission to help governments adopt digital platforms that connect citizens to essential government services. The joint initiative aligns with USAID’s Digital Policy

Visa and USAID Partner to Expand Digital Government Systems and Financial Inclusion Read More »

ZEPZ Secures $267 Million to Bolster Expansion in African Markets

Zepz, the parent company of money transfer service Sendwave, has successfully raised $267 million in a fresh round of funding, aimed at fueling its expansion efforts across key African regions and beyond. This latest capital infusion came from a blend of both new and existing investors, underscoring the company’s robust appeal and growth potential in

ZEPZ Secures $267 Million to Bolster Expansion in African Markets Read More »

Buy Now, Pay Safer – FCA Cracks Down on Debt Danger

Millions of consumers in the UK who use Buy-Now, Pay-Later (BNPL) services will soon benefit from stronger financial protections. The UK government has announced plans to bring BNPL providers under the supervision of the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and apply critical consumer safeguards previously absent in this booming sector. The Need for Regulation BNPL services,

Buy Now, Pay Safer – FCA Cracks Down on Debt Danger Read More »

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Post-Brexit: data protection
Card processor sends sensitive data to wrong address
24 August 2022

Worldline SA subsidiary Payone GmbH has been accused of breaching data protection rules after it sent sensitive employee payroll information to the wrong address by accident. The Worldline Group holdS a 60% stake in the Frankfurt based company who have a small UK market presence.

In June 2021, one of Payone GmbH’s ex UK employees (the data subject) received a “potential data breach notification” from the firm advising him that his salary, National Insurance data, nationality (Special Category Data) was amongst various bits of information sent to an incorrect home address.

This included personal information such as the former employees name, age and address.  It also included details such as the date of birth and the amount of annual work bonus he received in his bank account amongst other identifiable data.

Payone GmbH confirmed that this document was sent out in error following an employee making a mistake when re-entering data processed by their third-party payroll provider.  The error arose when the employee was fulfilling an Article 15 GDPR request. The error was spotted by the data subject when he noticed in an email version of the document that the postal address was incorrect. An attempt to notify Payone GmbH of the error went in vain as the document was already irretrievably despatched.

The data subject was alarmed with the incident which exposed him to the possibility of fraudulent activity, amidst reasonable fears his data could end up on the dark web and used by criminals.  Habitually resident in the UK he complained to the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) in June 2021. He similarly raised the concern in Germany via The Hessian Commissioner for Data Protection and Freedom of Information (HBDI).

The ICO reprimanded Payone GmbH for the error in their final decision letter.
Similarly, the HBDI cited a violation of Article 5(f) of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) relating to integrity and confidentiality.

The ICO stated in their July 2021 findings that Payone GmbH, “should take steps to ensure that all personal data records are accurate and up to date. Holding inaccurate information, such as addresses, does increase the risk of personal data breaches and poses risks to the security of information”.

The HBDI confirmed in their October 2021 findings that Payone GmbH had taken remedial action. They concluded that a monetary fine would not be imposed on Payone GmbH as they had taken technical and organisational steps in response to the data breach. Data subjects could now request their data in an autonomous portal.

The GDPR, which came into effect in 2018, gave the Information Commissioner’s Office greater powers to tackle data breaches. The new ‘UK GDPR’ charts its own course after Brexit whilst seeking to maintain EU GDPR adequacy.  In extreme scenarios, organisations face penalties of up to £20m or 4 per cent of their global worldwide turnover, whichever is more.

In the years prior to GDPR, the ICO fines were capped at £500,000.

The data subject said: “I am just glad I spotted it; they were going to resend the document again to another wrong address. Prior to Brexit the process would have been commenced via the ICO who in turn would liaise with the HBDI on the data subjects’ behalf; but I found myself communicating with both authorities separately which was an additional step but in the end was surprisingly
effective. Unfortunately, Payone GmbH again sent my incorrect address to the
Workers Pension Trust in January 2022, and documents yet again went to the wrong address. In my opinion they have not learned from the first time and my complaint is sitting with the ICO yet again”.

The former employee is pursuing a remedy under Article 82 UK GDPR via
the Court’s of England & Wales.

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