Geneva, Switzerland (GenevLunch) – The French justice minister, Michèle Alliot-Marie, confirmed Thursday 10 December that Switzerland has asked for administrative assistance in the case of data theft from HSBC Bank in Geneva, and that French authorities would answer it, reports Swiss-German newspaper NZZ. A former employee of the British bank’s private banking arm has provided French authorities with client details, several media sources report. The former IT specialist, variously described as a dual French-Italian or French-Swiss national, has been given a new identity and is living under protection in the south of France.

HSBC said in a statement 9 December that Swiss police had been informed of the theft, which is said to have taken place in 2006 or 2007, and that “to the best of the bank’s knowledge, the number of names potentially involved is less than 10″, reports Forbes, but French media report that up to 4,000 clients may be involved, without offering a source for the information.

The Times in the UK, suggests that the controversy in August between Bern and Paris over 3,000 client names obtained by the French budget minister, Eric Woerth, may be related to the client data stolen from HSBC. At the time, Woerth said only that he had not paid for the data.

In an article in French newspaper, Le Figaro, the data thief is described as a French-Swiss, primarily motivated by idealism. He reportedly initially contacted the headquarters of the OECD in Paris, was approached by a member of the French security services, and was then put in touch with finance ministry investigators.

Links to other sites: Le Figaro, Le Temps, Le Parisien, The Times

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