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Google emails Virgin Media subscribers ... about privacy

Infuriated customers want to know how the Goog got their addresses

Fuming Virgin Media customers have taken to the telco's forum to complain that their email addresses have been used by Google, instead of being kept private.

The customers got a surprise email from Google today, who seemed to think they were all users.

The Chocolate Factory is in the middle of updating its users about its new privacy policy, which will mean that Gmailers surfing the web will use other Google products in conjunction with that account whether they want to or not.

Virgin Media moved all of its subscribers onto Google's service when it signed a deal with the company back in 2009 after getting rid of the legacy email systems left over from NTL and Telewest.

Despite this, Virgin Media customers did not expect to get emails directly from the Chocolate Factory and didn't know that Google had access to their addresses.

Irate customers also want to know how Google's privacy changes will affect the telco's privacy policy.

"I realise that VM have outsourced the email service to Google but would expect significant changes in the account conditions etc to be announced by VM not by Google," one subscriber said on the Virgin Media forum.

"I'm sure VM subcontract and outsource to hundreds of companies – nothing to do with me however, my privacy agreement etc is with VM," another said.

Other complaining customers said they'd received the Google email to both blueyonder and virginmedia addresses.

A Virgin Media spokesperson told The Register: "Google provides our email platform and we're aware they’ve emailed some Virgin Media Mail users directly. We’re speaking to Google to understand why."

The telco couldn't say at this time whether its own privacy policy was going to be affected by Google's policy changes. ®

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