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Naples-Led Raid Exposes Nationwide Sale of State Database Records

Prosecutors say corrupt officials sold state-held data through a low‑cost market that flourished because oversight failed.

Overview

  • Police, following Wednesday’s coordinated operation ordered by a Naples judge, executed 29 precautionary measures that included 10 arrests across Naples, Rome, Ferrara, Bolzano and Belluno.
  • Investigators say public officials and private operators pulled data from police, tax, social security and postal databases, then packaged the results and sold them to clients through agencies.
  • A seized Excel price list shows checks on INPS and similar databases cost about €6–€11 while lookups in police systems cost roughly €25 per query.
  • The probe began after auditors spotted two officers making about 730,000 unjustified queries in two years, activity that prosecutors say fed a commercial pipeline to at least a dozen companies.
  • Police seized about €1.3 million and a server holding over 15,000 files, and the case now spans more than 80 suspects and a victim pool that includes entertainers and business leaders, raising pressure to fix audit alerts that should flag such mass access.