Civil servant sold welfare data to private investigators

A civil servant at the Department of Social Protection has been jailed for a year. He was caught selling the personal details of hundreds of people to private investigators probing insurance claims.

The Data Protection Commissioner (DPC) described the actions of Rory Lenihan, a 50-year-old father-of-five, as shocking and said his sentence was a warning to other employees with access to personal data that misusing it has severe consequences.

Mr Lenihan, from Ballaghderg, Letterkenny, received €22,000 in corrupt payments from private investigators, over a three-year period, while he was based at the Department of Social Protection offices in Co Donegal.