118800 mobile phone directory fudges launch

Telephone directories have been with us for almost as long as the telephone. Everyone accepts them as part of life, and the people who don’t want to be involved opt out and go ex-directory. However, mobile phones are a little different, which is why the new 118800 mobile phone directory has caused a lot of controversy.

Mobile phones are much more personal than home telephones. They accompany you wherever you go, are more intrusive to your daily life, and are much more an extension of yourself than a home telephone can ever be. Which is maybe why the idea of anyone being able to find out our mobile phone number is anathema to most.

A service has just launched in the U.K. which aggregates mobile phone numbers enabling anyone to contact someone they know. The company 118800 bought the names and mobile telephone numbers of millions of people from existing market research lists and online business directories. So anyone who has ever willingly provided their mobile phone number in the past could now be in the system.

This has caused privacy concerns in the U.K. because very few of the people who revealed their details knew their number could be sold on to other companies for unrelated purposes. This sets a dangerous precedent where mobile phone numbers are passed around without consent first being sought.

It is possible to withdraw your mobile number from the company’s database, supposedly. By either using the Web site or by texting the company, you can effectively go ex-directory. However, there’s speculation that this is just a way to gather more phone numbers and to confirm ones already held in the database are still being used.

Whatever the truth, the service hasn’t exactly had an auspicious start. As first noted by The Telegraph, both the Web site and the phone number are currently suspended while improvements are made. In the meantime, people seeking to ensure their mobile phone number isn’t on the company’s database have to sit and wait.

It seems likely that the influx of people opting to go ex-directory as soon as possible was more than the company could cope with. And I can’t say I’m exactly shocked. The fact people are being asked to actively opt out of being part of the service rather than opting in sums up what a bad idea the whole thing is.

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