It will prove interesting when firms persist more and more in getting staff to re-sign ammended versions of their initial contracts of employment - especially since the recent data protection crackdown.
I’m one of those people who resists signing anything that is totally downside for me, and no upside whatsoever.
I remember over the years items like “If you go onto monthly from weekly pay, we’ll give you a £1000 one-off sweetner” - I was up for that, but Union said no and we ended up all on monthly pay ANYWAY, but with no grand thrown at us!
Then there’s “Please sign this to confirm the firm has the right to use your data for any reason they see fit. The data, once gathered by the firm becomes theirs, and whilst you retain rights under data protection to view any data held about you - you may NOT tell others collecting your data to delete it”
F… that. If someone has already stolen my data under false pretences to start with, then the very last thing I’m going to do is “give permission” to hurl that data about further afield.
What next? - Someone finds out where I live, and being the popular soul that I am - I get firebombed at home?
I retain “Right to be Paranoid” then. 
Outside firms on websites of course will attempt to steal your data in that they’ll:-
(1) Help themselves to it 
(2) Ask you to “stay on this page” or “click anywhere” to “give permission for us to keep and distribute your data forever”. 
(3) Refuse to delete your data upon your request. Demand that you get a court order to make them. 
(4) Effectively “ban you from site” (!) if you do not comply with their attempts to harvest “Permissions” from you. 
This latter (4) point is just another attempt to take the Internet private of course, at which point it becomes Big Brother… Companies can steal and act with impunity, but you try and get anything out of a company - and it will always be “possession is nine tenths of the law”… “We’ve stolen your data, it is now ours unless you can afford to sue us to make us take it down”.
Examples of the type of data abuse that can follow might include things like:
(1) You are recently divorced. Ex gets to find out from their solicitor that you’ve made a few “big ticket” purchases recently, implying that the settlement being sought can thus be bumped up somewhat… “If Ex Hubby now has a jag, I want half of that value added to my settlement in progress!”
(2) You have recently declared bankruptcy. You’re supposed to stick all assets in your name into the pot, with the receiver allowing one to retain only low-value assets. This means once again, expose that flash purchase - and it’ll effectively be confiscated from you!
(3) Applying for Credit. Despite the fact that credit reference agencies are supposed to remove data over six years old as standard, there is no force on earth that will get them to remove data originally put there by a company or person that no longer exists. “They” own the data, and they no longer exist to be asked permission to take it down. Thus, someone can put “John Smith took a loan off Robert Maxwell, and thus John Smith owes all the debts of the Late Robert Maxwell, debts to be pursued against John Smith forever and ever amen”. (Makes no difference - until you try applying for a mortgage in particular! - Life ruining if you have not got that far in your life yet - Ouch!)
(4) Moving House? - The crap follows you, but not the good stuff should you not quite effectively tell everyone you’ve moved. I still get the occasional pension letter relating to the previous occupants for example…
(5) “Footprint” - I recommend filling in no forms unless there is an actual advantage to be had from signing such. Everyone and his dog wants your data - and your permission to own it forthwith forever after… Buying something in a shop? - Don’t bloody sign anything, especially “Free” stuff like Maintencence contracts, or anything with the dreaded words “This does not affect your statutory rights” Yeh right like f— does it! Applying for finance or getting a job - seems to me to be the only time I should be signing any forms…
(6) Paying someone else’s bills for them. Just don’t even go there! There is no limit to online attempts to “allign” data so that YOU are somehow responisble for someone else…
If the previous occupant has a criminal record, bad credit, used the same IP address as you, worked at the same place, has a bank account where you bank. The openings for “Phishing” are endless.
You can even get “phishers” offering to “delete all adverse data for a fee” - which is of course, what puts people on a mug list. Never pay for anything involving “data” - or you’ll be mugged forever!
On that last point, I remember when I first moved into my current address, I got a big telephone bill from BT, whom I’ve not personally been with for years and years. They told me in no uncertain terms that if I “refused to pay”, then I would have the adverse credit put on my file. I never did end up paying it - but they sure kept their promise to adversely affect my file! - Good job I live within my means these days, and have long since weaned myself off the need to “borrow cash”. If I can’t afford it out of my earnings - I don’t have it.
“Someone once at the same address is not me”
“An IP address is not a person, least of all me”
“someone with the same name elsewhere - is not me”
“Someone pretending to be me to take out a loan in my name - is not me, and I won’t be settling that debt, nor paying to have my record updated to remove the false data”
As for outfits like so-called “Credit Reference Agencies” - they are the very worst of the “data thieves” of course - but no longer able to do one damage - unless one ever wants to borrow money at some point in the future. The way they abuse today’s youngsters, in particular University leavers - is downright disgusting! They will be needing credit at some point in their futures you see… And that is when and where they have those students over a barrel for life!
