Big Brother Awards on privacy

The human rights watchdog Privacy International has announced the shortlist for the fifth annual "Big Brother awards" which name and shame the Government and private sector organisations that have done the most 'to invade personal privacy in Britain.

The awards will be bestowed at a special event in London at the end of March 2003. Awards will also be given to individuals and organisations that have made an outstanding contribution to the protection of privacy

Privacy International, a London based civil rights group, has for the past 13 years raised awareness around the world about privacy threats ranging from military surveillance to workplace drug testing. Since their inception in 1998, Big Brother Awards are now held as an annual event in fourteen different countries, including the UK, the US, France, Germany and the Netherlands.

The gold awards - in the shape of a boot stamping on a human head - will be presented in five categories. The judges have announced the shortlist, together with their reasons:

Most Invasive Company

The award in this category will be a fiercely fought contest between Capita (the company behind many of the Government's most controversial surveillance and data management schemes), Argos, which (among other transgressions) has participated in a customer thumb-printing scheme, and the credit reference giant Experian, which won the company category award in 1999.

Most Appalling Project

The lead contender in this category is the Government's "Data Sharing" scheme, shepherded by the Performance & Innovation Unit. The other short-listed nominees are Electronic Voting and the Government's Entitlement Card proposal.

Most Heinous Government Organisation

This will be a contest between our old favourite the Home Office, and two newcomers: the Lord Chancellor's Department and the Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO).

Worst Public Servant

Home Secretary David Blunkett was consistently nominated for this category, but his transgressions against personal privacy have been so grave that the judges also unanimously promoted him to the Lifetime Menace shortlist. He will compete with Ken Livingston (nominated because of his obsession with travel and transport surveillance), and the Government's secretive "Interception of Communications" Commissioner, Sir Swinton Thomas.

Lifetime Menace Award

This will be a fiercely contested category. Prime Minister Tony Blair is ahead of the field because of his active involvement in the Government's attack on civil liberties. David Blunkett is close on his heels. Capita becomes the second company ever to make it to the Lifetime Menace category.

Privacy International's Director, Simon Davies, issued a warning about the state of privacy in the UK. He said privacy invasion in Britain has become "a vast industry that threatens the rights of everyone in Britain".

Mr Davies said: "The judges have been overwhelmed this year with a vast number of malodorous nominations. Many politicians and companies have since the September 11th attacks jumped onto the security bandwagon without any justification".

"We have noticed a disturbing level of hostility toward privacy over the past year by nearly all parts of government and the private sector."

Privacy International has also been critical of the Office of the Information Commissioner, claiming that it was rapidly becoming part of the problem. The Commissioner's Office has been nominated for a "Dishonourable Mention" because of its consistent failure to adequately promote and protect the principles of privacy.