Campaigners argue it is a “major expansion of government power that takes away our financial privacy like never before and does away with the presumption of innocence – the democratic principle that you shouldn’t be spied on unless police suspect you of wrongdoing”.
Mel Stride, the secretary of state for work and pensions, clarified in parliament last month that these powers would only be used when there is a “clear signal of fraud or error” and bank accounts will not be investigated unless there is evidence.
But this has done little to ease fears. The Big Issue recently reported on a case where a mother was falsely accused of owing more than £12,000 to the DWP. It later admitted that a mistake had been made, and the government actually owed her money.
This was a case where “error” was signalled, but the claimant had done nothing wrong.
Susannah Copson, legal and policy officer at Big Brother Watch, explained: “The proposals to scan bank accounts on the premise of detecting fraud are incredibly concerning. With more than 22.6 million individuals in the welfare system, these measures subject people to unwarranted and suspicion-less surveillance merely for receiving benefits. However, it’s not restricted to people in the welfare system.
“Others linked to these accounts – potentially including landlords, ex/partners, or children – would find themselves tangled in this web of surveillance. In order to find these people, banks will have to conduct scans on all of our accounts.”
It comes following renewed outrage around the Post Office scandal, which evidenced the human impact of a powerful public body wrongly accusing innocent people of owing huge amounts of money.
Copson added: “Algorithms make mistakes. The consequences could be dire, resulting in people unable to afford essentials like rent or bills. The echoes of the Horizon Scandal are palpable, and these powers pose a massive risk of recreating such injustices on a broader scale. People on the poverty line, people with disabilities, who are sick or disabled, or are elderly, amongst others would be most at risk.
“These powers have been smuggled in at a late stage of the Data Protection and Digital Information Bill and were not properly scrutinised by the House of Commons. They’ve come completely out of the blue and it’s really concerning that powers of intrusive mass surveillance are being rushed through by stealth.
“Benefits are lifesaving for many. Tackling fraud is important and the government have a range of powers to do this already. Sacrificing the public’s privacy and putting vulnerable people at risk is not an appropriate way to go about it.”
You can sign Big Brother Watch’s petition here.
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