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Care homes are being targeted by bogus companies into paying more than £100 to register under the Data Protection Act 1998.

Letters being sent to care homes and other businesses are proving to be so official-looking and threatening in tone that they con many of the organisations into paying between £95 and £135 for an annual registration under the act.

The fake data protection agencies use names that are similar to the Data Protection Agency.

The information commissioner's office estimates more than 200 businesses a month fall victim to the scam.


Peter Hobbs, data protection lead for Solihull Council, said this was a major problem - 50 care homes had received bogus letters in the past six months - but expected it was just the tip of the iceberg as many would have paid and not realised they'd been duped.

Hobbs added that the scam "diluted" the message the council was trying to get across to the sector on the importance of registering under the DPA.

"We're trying to get small homes to think more about data protection, but if they get these demands they see it as another expense and are frightened by it. It is a major problem," he told delegates at an information-sharing conference last week.

Sheila Scott, chief executive of the National Care Homes Association, said her organisation had been warning its members about the scam for more than a year.


Scott estimated most care homes would have received a letter asking them to pay a fee for data protection registration. The amount of money requested did not tend to be large enough to make people stop and think before paying it, she said.

She advised care home owners to be on their guard and not to pay if they received demands for more than the one-off £35.

The information commissioner's office holds a list of organisations that have had complaints made against them, and advises care homes to check the notification section of its website if they are unsure about the authenticity of a letter. 

- www.informationcommissioner.gov.uk