Would this be against Data Protection?

[Needadoughnut]

Long story short, a few months ago I enrolled in some sort of EU funded programme that helps people get into work. They really don't do mucho apart from helping with CVs. In the end I got a job but completely unrelated to them (they never really helped). I know they get their funding by confirming they get people into work. Anyhow, today they contacted my workplace without me giving them the number or even full details of where I work. Would this be even remotely legal? I just feel they should have never by passes me. Tia!

How did they find out where you work, and what were they contacting your employer for?

I think they might have found me on LinkedIn that's the only explanation I have. The HR lady hasn't been explicit but I'm thinking they just wanted to confirm I work here and my hours

How did they get the company's information? Did they impart any of your information? As an aside, you have the right for your data to be accurate, so if they update the records they hold on you saying you gained employment through them you could challenge them on the accuracy.

Ok well in that case the fact you work there is information you’ve chosen to put in the public eye yourself.

Your concern should be whether your employer shared personal data about you with the external organisation. Any data protection breach would be most likely to be your employer telling the other organisation confidential things about you.

In theory the other organisation could commit a data breach by sharing data about you with your employer but as they were the ones that made contact it seems less likely.

From what you've just posted it would be the new company that has potentially breached if they confirmed information about you, the original company obtained the information you put in the public domain.

I actually think my employer did as they shared I work here even though they asked for a different name. (My employer wasn't 100% sure of my first name, but I go by my middle name).

But you have put it on LinkedIn that you work there?

They confirmed it though but they're nice and not very experienced so I'm ok with my employer. I actually don't know what they asked my colleague only called it an "audit".

I think you are probably getting too over dramatic about stuff, especially if you only want to air a grievance if its based one way. You are more anti the funded company than you are concerned about data protection.

It would have been fair to tell them you had secured work privately, if that had been the case. And who is to say they didnt help if they were involved in your CV? Did you not usr that CV to apply for this job?

No I didn't use their CV at all to get my job. It was my own CV that got me this role (that they deemed too technical!) They knew I got this job myself and they didnt help in any way shape or form and that's why I'm annoyed. In fact none of the interviews I got were based on their CV so their help amounted to zero.