It was, and still is, a controversial practice – and inevitably drew the attention of hacktivists. Hackers breached his website, located the private details of thousands of internet users, and published them online. This brought down the full force of the Information Commissioner, who examined the case, found Crossley to be in breach of the Data Protection Act in failing to keep private data secure, and fined him a total of £1000.

Crossley was by this time bankrupt, and the ICO saw no reason to fine him more than £1000 since he would not be able to pay it.

But this wasn’t the end of Crossley’s problems: he was also in trouble with the Law Society. Numerous charges against him included acting contrary to the best interests of his clients and the good standing of the legal profession, allowing his independence to be compromised and acting without integrity.

Faced with the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal from the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA), Crossley re-iterated his bankruptcy and claimed to be unable to afford legal representation. The Tribunal, however, clearly didn’t hear the same message as the ICO. It has ordered him to pay £72,326.55 and delivered a two year suspension from practicing as a lawyer. Details have not yet appeared on the SRA website.

There will undoubtedly be questions over why the ICO should appear to value personal data at £1000 when the Law Society values its integrity at £72,000.