2 February 2012

Leveson Inquiry: Hearings - Day 36

LEVESON INQUIRY:CULTURE, PRACTICE AND ETHICS OF THE PRESS

"I want this inquiry to mean something", not end up as "footnote in some professor of journalism's analysis of 21 century history." LJ Leveson in reply to A Rusbridger's submission to Inquiry.

Lord Justice Leveson

From Guardian:
Here's a quick reminder of the four modules within this first year of the inquiry.
Module 1: The relationship between the press and the public and looks at phone-hacking and other potentially illegal behaviour
Module 2: The relationships between the press and police and the extent to which that has operated in the public interest
Module 3: The relationship between press and politicians
Module 4: Recommendations for a more effective policy and regulation that supports the integrity and freedom of the press while encouraging the highest ethical standards.

Witness list for this week (30th January to 2nd February) to be found HERE
Video Recordings of each day's proceedings HERE
Live Feed From Leveson Inquiry Site HERE
BBC Democracy Live Feed HERE 



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Today's links to articles, info and comments relevant to the Leveson Inquiry (frequently updated) :
The Sun executives are asked about the breaching of injunctions on Twitter and other social networks.
Caseby says that Twitter is a "rival media" to newspapers. Mohan says "we are competing for eyeballs with social media".
On the Ryan Giggs injunction, Mohan says he was "very very" aware that many millions of Sun readers probably already knew the person behind the injunction.
"That ultimately, I would say, could put us out of business," Mohan says.
and:
Lord Hunt is asked about social media.
He says he has had a "very good" discussion with Paul Staines of the Guido Fawkes blog. Staines told Hunt that what he writes is "always accurate".
Staines "promised to go away and consider" being kitemarked under the new PCC, Hunt says.
Friday 3rd February 
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Thursday 2nd February 2012
  ( Link to Hearing Day 35 HERE )



 Today's Witnesses:

William Butler ( Security Industry Authority )
Adrian Gorham (O2 )  

James Blendis ( Everything Everywhere )
Baroness Hollins 

Mark Hughes ( Vodafone )

Tony Imossi ( Association of British Investigators )

David Palmer ( Institute of Professional Investigators )
Tony Smith ( World Association of Professional Investigators )





William (Bill) Butler





Witness Statement in Full


Hacked off
[Barr thought Butler had only just arrived. Turns out he's been sitting in the courtroom all morning.]

Hacked off
Butler has held senior positions at various commissions. The SIA regulates the private security industry, regulates doorstaff, etc.

Ross Hawkins
SIA regulates security guards, those who do close personal protection, CCTV operators, wheel clampers



Hacked off
Butler: Intent, willingness and desire to regulate private investigations has always been there but have failed to do so.

Hacked off
Butler: I would not want to move forward with regulation without the benefit of this inquiry's recommendations.

Hacked off
Butler: There's a willingness to move forward and get PIs into regulation but with the best will in the world, not quickly.

Hacked off
Butler: A new regime would be on licensing businesses rather than individuals.

Hacked off
asks Butler what he can provide to him or Secretary of State to hurry regulation process along.

Ross Hawkins
- slightly wordily - says private investigators should be regulated and not through self regulation

Ross Hawkins
invites short written submissions on anonymous evidence


Guardian Live Blog:
Butler says he has spoken to the information commissioner about custodial sentences for breaches of the Data Protection Act but says he does not have a view one way or the other.He adds: "I have absolutely no desire to regulate journalists."
Leveson replies: "I'm sure you don't. Actually the problem I'm having is finding someone who does."
Butler is asked how the present system of licensing private investigators was influenced by the information commissioner's What Price Privacy? reports and the phone-hacking scandal.He describes the What Price Privacy? reports as "helpful". Hacking and blagging "reinforces our need to get on with this," he tells the inquiry.

James Blendis
 Mark Hughes
Adrian Gorham

        

      Witness Statement from O2
      Witness Statement from Vodafone  
      Witness Statement of Everything Everywhere

      From Guardian Live Blog: 12.05 p.m.
      Our reporter Lisa O'Carroll has just filed this from the Leveson inquiry where O2's Adrian Gorham, Everything Everywhere's James Blendis and Vodafone's Mark Hughes have been giving evidence about pphone hacking:
      Mobile phone companies have said they were given two suspect numbers to check against their records that they now understand to belong to the News of the World.
      Vodafone said after an internal investigation it discover that 177 unique voicemail boxes were called by these numbers relating to 40 victims.
      O2 said its checks showed that 40 victims were phoned by these numbers, while Orange identified 45 victims.
      T-Mobile identified 70 victims, some of whose numbers it said belonged to News of the World journalists. The head of legal for the company, James Blendis, said this may have been because someone was trying to test their activities.
      "Some of the numbers were journalists at the News of the World so that is likely that there was some trial and error of the process," said Blendis.
      It is understood the police asked the mobile phone companies about the suspect numbers in 2006.
      T-Mobile did not contact customers until January 2012 after being asked verbally by police not to.

          IndexLeveson
          Mark Hughes (Vodafone), Adrian Gorham (O2) and James Blendis (Everything Everywhere) will appear together first



          IndexLeveson
          Hughes says he doesn't know why security wasn't enhanced in late 90s after claims made by Steven Nott re voicemail security

          Hacked off
          Hughes: Changed PIN system when criminality revealed and aware of attack methods. Only customer can see their own PIN.

          Hacked off
          Blendis: The PIN has never been visible to our customer service agents. Never stored on the system.

          IndexLeveson
          Blendis says PIN has never been visible to our customer service agents. Adds security important to us

          Hacked off
          Gorham: Customers can't use voicemail service without setting unique PIN. Blendis and Hughes: We restrict "guessable" numbers. 

          Hacked off
          All reps say their mobile networks have introduced specific training to deal with blagging techniques.

          Hacked off
          Hughes: The challenge is getting customers to use these numbers and set PINs that are not easily guessable.

          Hacked off
          Blendis: Introducing option for customers to switch off remote access so voicemail can't be hacked if they don't use it.

          Hacked off
          Hughes: Changes in 2006 did not include Vodafone Mail service, put this right in 2010 and alerted the inquiry in January.

          Hacked off
          Hughes: Checked with Op Weeting whether victims were users of Vodafone Mail. None of them were.

          Hacked off
          Gorham: The exploitation was news to us until Mulcaire/Goodman. No evidence it was being abused in any way prior to that.

          Ross Hawkins
          Vodafone rep says tapping mobile calls is possible but v difficult, takes time, equipment & money, and calls encrypted

          Hacked off
          Hughes: Approx 15 people have access to location data at Vod. Gorham: About 50, inc. police disclosure team and engineers at O2.

          Hacked off
          Blendis: About 20 people at Orange/T-Mobile have location data access.

          lisa o'carroll
          all three mobile phone execs say no customer service staff have access to info showing location of phone.

          Natalie Peck
          very interesting rut now for anyone who has been frustrated with mobile network customer service security checks.

          Hacked off
          All reps say their companies have protection for whistleblowers.

          Hacked off
          Hughes: Vodafone has had 13 investigations resulting in disciplinary warning or dismissal over data breaches since 2009.

          IndexLeveson
          Hughes (Vodafone) says, since 2009, 13 investigations into personal data security breaches led to disciplinary warning or dismissal

          Hacked off
          Blendis: Records show 4 staff from Orange/T-Mobile dismissed and prosecuted in last five years over breaches.

          IndexLeveson
          Gorham (O2) says 54 members of O2 staff disciplined, prosecuted or dismissed over data breaches since 2003

          lisa o'carroll
          ICO breaches of data between 08 and 11. BT: 42. Vodafone 18. Talk talk: 12, sky 10, orange1,

          Hacked off
          Hughes: 40 phone hacking victims on Vodafone.

          Hacked off
          Gorham: Just under 40 victims on O2 network.

          IndexLeveson
          Blendis says on Orange 45 victims, 71 on T-Mobile

          Hacked off
          Hughes: Expressly told not to contact victims in case prejudiced police investigation. Informed them in Jan 2012.

          Hacked off
          O2 customers contacted over hacking during original investigation. Orange/T-Mobile informed in 2011.

          Ross Hawkins
          Vodafone sent advice on voicemail hacking to people in media and government after Notw convictions

          Hacked off
          Blendis: Wrote to police in Nov 2010 asking for victim information so we could inform them. No response.

          Hacked off
          Blendis: Risk we could have tipped off hackers if we'd informed all suspected victims.

          lisa o'carroll
          vodafone says suspect news int line contacted 177 voicemails relating to 40 victims. O2 40 victims, orange 45, tmobile 71

          lisa o'carroll
          Tmobile/0range boss says some of the voicemail hacked by suspect News Int number belonged to News of the World journalists



          Baroness Hollins






          Witness Statement in Full

          Guardian Live Blog:
          Baroness Hollins, mother of stabbing victim Abigail Witchells, has taken the stand.
          On 20 April 2005, Abigail, while out walking with her son Joseph, was attacked and stabbed in the neck. She was pregnant at the time.She was found by a neighbour and taken to hospital, but she was paralysed and unable to speak, and remained in intensive care for several weeks, communicating with her family and police by blinking.
          Hollins says that the press articles she has submitted to the inquiry are "just the tip of the iceberg".
          "The press coverage of my daughter's injury was everywhere every day," she tells the inquiry.
          She says that it led news bulletins for a month at the time and there is still press interest in her.
          "It was incredibly intrusive," Hollins says.

          Ross Hawkins
          Hollins at : journalists were camping in the garden of daughter's house

          Hacked off
          Hollins: Journalist arrived at mother-in-law's house and wouldn't leave without photo of my daughter. Had to call the police.  

          Ross Hawkins
          Hollins at : police volunteered to guard her ward to protect her privacy

          Ross Hawkins
          Hollins at : in some ways press intrusion was more traumatic than attending to tragic event of her daughter's stabbing

          IndexLeveson
          Hollins: we joked there must be bugs in flowers that arrived. Things we spoke about in waiting room would be in papers next day 

          Hacked off
          Hollins: Police were posted to ensure her safety, but then it became about safety from the journalists. 

          Ross Hawkins
          Hollins at : we were offered up to £300k to sell Abigail's story, weren't interested
          From Guardian Live Blog:
          Journalists had to be ordered out of the garden of Baroness Hollins' daughter's house following her murder, Baroness Hollins says. The journalists had been camping there and sometimes had to ring the police to get them to back off."We had a big task – there was a child to look after, somebody was critically ill … the police mounted a guard on each door of the hospital ward to guarantee her protection," she says. "It was extraordinarily intrusive."
          She says that flowers from journalists would arrive and the family would joke that they must have been bugged.
          "We couldn't trust anybody and … it was more traumatic, if you can believe it, than attending to the real traumatic event that had taken place."

          Hacked off
          Jay brings up NoW 2005 article "Knife mum was pregnant". Hollins said it was very personal and private information. 

          Ross Hawkins
          Hollins at : Abigail only found out she was pregnant when admitted to hospital after attack - news turned up in paper 4 days later

          IndexLeveson
          Hollins says she doesn't know how news of Abigail's pregnancy got into public domain

          Hacked off
          Hollins: No woman tells the world she's pregnant, when she's five weeks pregnant. That felt very hard.
          Guardian Live Blog:
          Ben Fenton, the FT's media correspondent, has tweeted:

          Hacked off
          Next article is from Evening Standard, on death of Hollins' mother in 2005. "I do not know how it got into the public domain".  

          Ross Hawkins
          Hollins at : press went to Abigail's grandmother's funeral thinking Abigail might be there; was in intensive care at the time


          Hacked off
          Jay discusses Sun article "House of hope" from 2005. Hollins says it is full of inaccuracies.

          Ross Hawkins
          Hollins at : on Sun story re house to be built for Abigail, it's made up, many details wrong, lots of assumptions

          Hacked off
          [The copy of the article being shown to the inquiry is covered with "no" notes, written by Hollins.] 

          Hacked off
          Hollins talking about a 2005 Mail article linking Abigail's assault with one on her son, a vulnerable adult, a few years earlier.

          Ross Hawkins
          Hollins at : now describing "fantasy" in Mail article about her vulnerable son


          From Guardian Live Blog:
          Robert Jay, counsel to the inquiry, reads from a Sun story, headed "House of hope", about where Abigail was going to live following her release from hospital.
          Baroness Hollins says it is full of inaccuracies, and adds she does not know how the Sun obtained the story. "It's made up. It's full of assumptions," she says. "I've no idea where this came from."
          Jay reads from a Daily Mail article in November 2005. "There were many many many things in that article that were untrue," she says. However, she says this article was more distressing than others because it allegedly linked Abigail's assault with one on Hollins' son – a vulnerable adult – a few years earlier.
          "It's fantasy. But I particularly felt upset because I felt vulnerable for him because he is a vulnerable adult," she says.

          Hacked off
          Next article is from Sun 2006 about Abigail taking a trip to Lourdes. Hollins says it was a private retreat with family.  

          Ross Hawkins
          Hollins at : 2009 report that Abigail had regained speech false, she'd regained speech in hospital in 2005

          Ross Hawkins
          Hollins at : worried what Abigail's children will see on the internet of this coverage in years to come

          Ross Hawkins
          Hollins at : journos with copies of D Mail in their cars staked out Abigail's house on a rota

          IndexLeveson
          Hollins says one journalist was asked to leave Abigail's son's sports day at school

          Ross Hawkins
          Hollins at : Jay suggests this was a Daily Mail photographer; Hollins says PCC didn't act saying they needed journo's name

          Ben Fenton
          Jay has been asked if it is right photographer was 200-300 yards away in his car. Hollins said less. No more than 100 yards. 

          Ben Fenton
          PCC told Hollins they couldn't act without knowing the photographers' name

          Ross Hawkins
          Hollins at : Mail on Sunday reneged on promise to use just 1 photo, and to print it further back when reprinting article by Hollins
          Guardian Live Blog:
          Hollins says the Daily Mail once called to ask whether they could reprint an article she had written for a small weekly journal towards the back of the newspaper.Essentially the Mail said it would publish it anyway and wanted a picture to go with it, she says. Hollins sent a photograph but was told it was too grainy so she sent another.
          The Mail eventually published the story on its front page.
          "To make it worse the article they got which must have been leaked somehow was actually the first draft which I'd changed quite a bit," she says.

          IndexLeveson
          Hollins: to find the time and energy to pursue a complaint when we were dealing with new experiences didn't seem fruitful

          Hacked off
          Hollins: PCC wanted detail of specific incident but our distress was caused by hundreds. It was about whole culture of the press. 

          IndexLeveson
          Hollins: we were not in any way seeking publicity, we were dealing with something v difficult

          Ross Hawkins
          Hollins at : intrusion had no sensitivity to fact we were not seeking publicity 

          Ross Hawkins
          Hollins at : press coverage caused quite a division in the family, a lot of emotion by this public exposure

          Ross Hawkins
          Hollins at : considered resigning her job because press interest in her daughter meant she couldn't represent her profession

          Hacked off
          Hollins: My daughter was not a celebrity and we were dealing with something that was very difficult for everybody.

          Ross Hawkins
          Hollins at : if you're protecting your sources in order to cover up you haven't got a source that's not good enough

          Hacked off
          Hollins: If you're presenting inaccuracies then somebody should be able to get a clarification or an apology.

          Ben Fenton
          There is a responsibility to tell the truth and make sure your facts are right. If you lift, you should quote your source.

          IndexLeveson
          Hollins: how do you behave when someone misquotes you? We didn't know, we had to learn. Our priorities were elsewhere

          Hacked off
          Caplan apologises again to Hollins on behalf of Mail on Sunday for reusing a photograph she had given them for solo use.

          Tony Imossi

           



          Witness Statement #1 in Full
          Witness Statement #2 in Full


          Hacked off
          The ABI has approximately 500 members, 450 UK-based.

          Hacked off
          ABI has five regional branches and is funded by annual subscriptions from members.

          Ross Hawkins
          Private investigators seeking Royal charter for their industry body says Imossi

          Ross Hawkins
          PI org chief Imossi says he "took it upon myself" to track down Derek Webb, Notw det, says Webb wasn't licensed as Webb claimed

          Hacked off
          Imossi: PIs told position of trust and confidentiality and responsibility to the inside knowledge we gain from our activities.

          Hacked off
          Imossi: In 2009 granted provisional membership to man who were later informed by police was convicted sex offender. Lied on form.

          Hacked off
          Imossi: Would like to exercise standard CRB check under law, this would happen if industry regulated under statute.

          Hacked off
          Imossi: Change of culture requiring insurance but part of move to professionalise industry and show public we are the good guys.

          Hacked off
          Imossi: ICO What Price Privacy report was a shock and awe document to expose the extent of the problem.

          IndexLeveson
          Imossi: can't for the life of me think why investigator would take such a risk by intercepting voicemail

          IndexLeveson
          Imossi: we're sensitive to not encouraging intrusive methods

          Hacked off
          Imossi: I think hacking and blagging is an ongoing issue. I certainly wasn't aware hacking was being used at the time.

          Hacked off
          Imossi: Mobile telephone interception was being used as a norm tool of first resort.

          Hacked off
          Imossi: Online services offered are interception of emails and interrogation of computers. : Please provide us wil URLs later.

          Hacked off
          Imossi: I'm surprised it hasn't really hit the media as it should have done (Illegal services offered online).

          Hacked off
          Imossi: We want to launch an ABI academy providing accredited training. SIA have approved it.

          Hacked off
          Imossi: We saw ICO's view on s55 breaches as a threat to regulating the industry and thought document encouraged illegality.

          Hacked off
          Barr points out when ABI introduced CRB checks, five percent failed to renew and 18 members were expelled for not producing one.

          Hacked off
          : Difficult to see how fragmented industry can be brought under cohesive self-regulation.



          David Palmer

          Witness Statement in Full







          Ross Hawkins
          David Palmer Institute of Professional Investigators and serving police officer now giving evidence at #leveson

          Hacked off
          Palmer is a serving police officer at Heddlu Gwent force. He works in the Financial Crime Unit.

          Hacked off
          Palmer: One appeal against finding of culpability, one member used surveillance footage on local TV and client complained.

          Hacked off
          Palmer: I conducted a check today, Derek Webb has not been an IPI member for 3-5 years.Imossi showed me his certificate dated 2005.

          IndexLeveson
          Palmer: identifying a qualification that fits generic membership level is difficult

          Hacked off
          Palmer: Some of our members are not PIs as public would understand it. We have a forensic tax accountant.

          IndexLeveson
          Palmer says when phone hacking scandal emerged he was fairly neutral. Not altogether surprising that sort of thing happened

          Hacked off
          Palmer: The fact people are out there conducting unlawful activities in the name of private investigators isn't a surprise to me.

          IndexLeveson
          Palmer: we've recently introduced CRB requirements

          IndexLeveson
          Palmer: years ago there was an "everybody knew everybody" environment in the industry

          Hacked off
          Palmer: We ask for 2 refs, CRB check, sometimes interview. People used to know each other in industry but we rely on documents now.

          Hacked off
          Palmer: Our preference would be for licencing by a regulatory authority, like the SIA.

          Ross Hawkins
          Current witness has just criticised criminal sentencing. is chair of the Sentencing Council. This is a bold strategy.

          lisa o'carroll
          . Head of professional investigators says he is not averse to jail for data breaches but queries it when rapists and robbers let off

          Tony Smith 








          Hacked off
          Smith is standing in for Ian Withers of WAPI.

          Ross Hawkins
          Tony Smith of WIPA : We threw out a member but - that company still trades, complains he has no teeth

          IndexLeveson
          Smith says he was amazed at extent of phone hacking scandal but adds "we all knew it was going on"

          Hacked off
          Smith: Media use PIs for locating people, untangling company groups and obtaining info on individuals.