AP police threatened me, says data theft complainant

HYDERABAD: A data analystturned-whistleblower said he was threatened by a team of Andhra Pradesh police for lodging a data theft complaint with Telangana police against an IT company that developed an app called Seva Mitra for TDP.

The AP police, who came from Guntur to Hyderabad, allegedly barged into the house of one Thummala Lokeswara Reddy on Sunday morning, and abused him and his family members. He claimed the AP cops tried to whisk him away. When it came to know about the incident, a team of Telangana police visited Lokeswar’s home at Indu Fortune Fields in Kukatpally Housing Board, and took him to Cyberabad police commissionerate. They offered him protection from AP police.

Lokeswara Reddy told TOI, “I am a data analyst, and I have been working on several data issues for the past one-and-half years. After coming to know about the government data including the sensitive voter data, benefits availed, caste details, family details in Seva Mitra app, I lodged a complaint with Madhapur police, which issued FIR. Since then, I have been receiving phone calls threatening me.”

“How can the private information of a citizen, be it Aadhaar or ECI colour photographs or pulse survey data info along with TDP booth-level committee details, are in one app? In what way a party needs details of government beneficiaries? The same data is in a cloud in a server based outside the country? How come such sensitive government data be based out of the country.”

However, the Guntur police said their team is in Hyderabad in search of a missing person. Guntur Urban superintendent of police, Vijaya Rao, told TOI, “A team led by our DSP is in Hyderabad searching for a missing person as per the complaint lodged with Pedakakani police station. A missing case has been registered.” Lokeshwar Reddy alleged that the application has details of 75 schemes and benefits availed.