Han Ximin

    ximhan@126.com

    AN investigation into nine companies, which were closed for buying personal information to engage in telemarketing harassment, revealed that at least 100,000 pieces of personal information had been leaked.

    Major suspects in the companies will be charged with infringing upon personal privacy and disturbing the normal life of residents by making harassing phone calls, according to the Criminal Investigation Department of the Shenzhen Municipal Public Security Bureau yesterday.

    Subjects of the information can be categorized into four types: property owners, car owners, company employees and others. The nine companies, mainly based in Futian, Nanshan and Luohu districts, engaged in fund and capital management, online financing and housing brokerage, according to officials.

    In an investment company in Shekou, police seized 12,000 pieces of information connected to a dozen housing estates in Shenzhen. The information includes names, phone numbers, addresses and apartment sizes. The car owner information includes names, addresses, types of cars, post codes, phone numbers and vehicle plate numbers.

    Besides personal information, police also found 14,000 pieces of company information that had been leaked.

    The accused companies were suspected of purchasing the information on the Internet and using the information for telemarketing and harassing the victims. Police are investigating the sources of the information leak.

    Shenzhen police launched an action against harassing phone calls last week by criminally detaining 13 suspects and administratively detaining 39 people. A total of 208 phone numbers were deactivated in the action, which busted 18 criminal rings.