I just had another email from BA...
Dear Customer
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To help you to monitor your personal information for certain signs of potential identity theft, we are offering you a free 12 month membership to Experian ProtectMyID. This service helps detect possible misuse of your personal data and provides you with identity monitoring support, focussed on the identification and resolution of identity theft.
In order to activate the free gift, I am instructed to click on a link in the same email, and enter a code that appears later in the email. How quaint, that an organisation recently caught out by unparalleled lack of security, should now be encouraging their customers to click on links in unsolicited emails, and enter all sorts of personal details, especially when addressed simply as 'Dear Customer'.
I suspect the email is genuine of course, and I may explore this 'free gift', though I'd do so by entering Experian's URL manually into my browser's address bar. First impressions are not good. From Experian's privacy policy, linked on the signup page, "How we use your information"...
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Administration of prize draws, competitions, membership offers, surveys and other promotional activities
From time to time we will run prize draws, competitions, promotions and surveys and, we will use the personal data you provide to us, to run such activities and to do what we agree to do as part of them.
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Tracking activity
We will use your information to track your activity on our apps and on our websites to help us better understand your interests and how you interact with us. We may also use this information to help us detect if someone else is trying to access your account or use the services you take from us. We will also use this information to better engage with you and to ensure that you get the best service we can provide and improve the products in the future.
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Wow, what an offer. First my card is skimmed on the BA website, now BA are passing me onto Readers' Digest style spammers, and Google style lifestyle trackers. I wonder if Experian are actually paying BA for sucker referals?