Mobile phone employee stole customers' personal details
Two former T-Mobile employees made more than £85,000 stealing and selling protected customer information.
David Turley, of Birmingham, and Darren Hames, of Staffordshire admitted offences under the data protection act and were ordered to pay back £73,000.
They were both given a conditional discharge at Chester Crown Court.
T-Mobile contacted the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) when it suspected someone was passing on information in December 2008.
Prosecuting, Sophie Cartwright told the court on Friday, the ICO discovered Hames, 39, of Tilling Drive, Walton, a former sales manager for T-Mobile in Hatfield, was illegally obtaining customer contract renewal dates, which included names, addresses, telephone numbers, emails and selling them to Turley.
Turley, 40, of Queens College Chambers, sold the information to other parties for direct marketing purposes.
Turley pleaded guilty to 18 offences under the data protection act was ordered to pay back £45,000 and given a three-year conditional discharge.
Hames pleaded guilty to offences and was ordered to pay back £28,000. He was given an 18-month conditional discharge.