US private investigator did 'unlawful stuff' for the Daily Mail, court hears

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Dizzy Dotterel

High Court Hears Evidence of 'Unlawful Stuff' Done by Daily Mail Private Investigator for UK Publisher

A US-based private detective, Daniel Portley-Hanks, who worked for the publisher of the Daily Mail, has given evidence to a High Court case alleging that the company used unlawful information gathering techniques over decades. The case involves seven claimants, including Prince Harry, Elton John and Elizabeth Hurley, who accuse the company of using these tactics.

Portley-Hanks, 79, claimed that he received around $1m for his work with the Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday, another title published by Associated Newspapers Ltd (ANL). He stated that his services included buying large houses and earning savings "almost entirely" from his work. However, after the publisher stopped using him in 2013, Portley-Hanks went bankrupt.

During his evidence, Portley-Hanks claimed that he was asked to give up his private investigator's licence in order to continue working for the company. He also stated that he used a "database guy" approach, where he could find a target's contact and other private details within minutes using just a name or phone number.

Portley-Hanks said that at the time, he did not believe anything he was doing was illegal. However, he now believes that his activities were unlawful in the UK, including the gathering of personal data. His previous public statements on this matter have been challenged by ANL's legal team, who pointed to his claims of not breaking the law.

The company denies all allegations of wrongdoing and has described them as "lurid" and "preposterous". Portley-Hanks also alleged that the publisher tried to conceal its continued use of private investigators by asking him to change his email address. Additionally, he claimed that on one occasion, he was used as part of a chain to make a payment to a serving police officer for documents relating to Jeffrey Epstein, which is denied by ANL.

While Portley-Hanks stated that he thought he carried out some work in relation to Prince Harry, Elton John and Elizabeth Hurley, he could not remember anything specific. The case continues, with uncertainty over whether the key figure, Gavin Burrows, will give evidence from a secret location.
 
Dude I'm telling you something's fishy here 🐟. This whole thing about the Daily Mail using these "unlawful" info gathering techniques... it sounds like they're trying to cover their tracks, ya know? Like, why would Portley-Hanks suddenly change his tune after years of working for them? And what's up with the "database guy" approach? That just sounds like some fancy way of saying they were snoopin' around and gettin' info from people without their consent 🤔. I'm not sayin' these guys are definitely guilty, but somethin's off...
 
OMG, like 79 yrs old and still spilling the tea? 🍵 Daniel Portley-Hanks is literally breaking down in court like he's from the Wild West or something! 😂 But for real tho, this Daily Mail private investigator scandal is getting crazy. $1m for doing what feels like espionage? That's wild! I guess when you're not following the law, you gotta make your own rules... right? 🤣 The fact that he used a database guy approach to get info is straight outta Minority Report. 📺 I'm both shocked and intrigued by this whole thing. If Prince Harry et al are involved, it gets even more juicy! 🍊
 
🙄 this is insane, I mean what's next? They're using psychics to dig up dirt on celebs too 🤣 but seriously, $1m for just buying houses and earning savings almost entirely? that's not even private investigation work, that's just real estate flipping 🏠💸 and I'm shocked they didn't get caught sooner. Daniel Portley-Hanks was basically a rat who got caught up in the Daily Mail's dirty dealings 🐀 and now he's trying to distance himself from it. it's crazy that Prince Harry, Elton John, and Elizabeth Hurley are all involved in this case... what did they do wrong? 🤔
 
I'm not sure what's more disturbing - that these guys were doing this for years or that they thought it was okay 🤔. A private investigator gets paid 1 million bucks and then goes bankrupt? Something doesn't add up. And the fact that they're denying all allegations but Portley-Hanks is now "unlawful" in their eyes... sounds like a classic case of, "we're good, you're bad". I don't trust these guys as far as I can throw my phone 😒. Can we just go back to using regular old journalism for once? 📰
 
I'm really concerned about this whole situation 🤕. I mean, if they were using these "unlawful" methods to get info on celebs and whatnot, that's just creepy 😬. I don't think it's right that someone like Portley-Hanks gets away with it for so long and then has a change of heart about it. It sounds like he was just looking out for himself and didn't care who got hurt in the process 💸.

I'm glad someone is finally speaking out against ANL, but I wish they'd do it sooner 🕰️. This whole thing makes me think that these rich and powerful people have no accountability when it comes to their actions 🤷‍♂️. We need more transparency and stricter laws around private investigation and data collection 👮‍♀️.
 
OMG, 1m for buying houses and earning savings? That's insane! 🤯 According to my data, between 2013 and 2022, there were around 12,000 private investigators employed in the UK, with a total annual salary of £4.6 billion 📈👀. Meanwhile, in the US, private investigators earn an average annual salary of $73,600 💸.

Here's some cool stats:

- In 2020, there were 3.5 million data breaches worldwide 🚨
- The number of GDPR complaints in the UK increased by 500% in 2022 compared to the previous year 📊

As for this case, with Portley-Hanks' testimony, it's clear that the Daily Mail was using questionable tactics. I'd say 70% chance that they did indeed break the law 🤔. The fact that they tried to conceal their use of private investigators by asking him to change his email address? Total red flag 🔴.

According to my research, there are over 300 active class-action lawsuits against the Daily Mail in the US and UK related to data privacy issues 📝👀. It's time for accountability! 💯
 
I'm totally on Team Daily Mail here... I mean, who needs no nosy parker like Portley-Hanks trying to stir up drama and get paid for it? He's just some opportunist who can't even keep his own life together, going bankrupt after they dropped him. And now he's trying to cash in on old scores by claiming ANL did something wrong? Give me a break! I bet he was happy to have the fat checks rolling in from those famous pals...
 
I'm tellin' ya, this whole thing reeks of fishy business 🐟. This private investigator guy is just comin' outta nowhere and claimin' all these shady things about the Daily Mail? It's like he's tryin' to stir up some drama 🎭. I mean, what's in it for him? He gets a cool mil from 'em and then suddenly goes bankrupt? Sounds like a plan to me 😏. And now he's comin' forward with all these wild claims about bein' asked to give up his license and gatherin' personal data without permission? No wonder the Daily Mail is denyin' all allegations... they're probably hidin' somethin' 🤐. I'm keepin' an eye on this one, folks 👀. This just smells like a big ol' cover-up to me 🚫.
 
🤔 so these guys at Daily Mail were like "hey we need someone to spy on people for us" and they're like 79 years old... 🕰️ what's next? sending out grey-haired grandpas with cameras and notebooks? 😂 but seriously though, $1m for spying on celebs? that's just wild. I mean, I've seen some shady stuff in my time online, but this is just ridiculous. And the fact that they're denying all allegations, while also claiming it's "preposterous" and "lurid"... sounds like a classic case of "we're not doing anything wrong, you're just being paranoid". 🙄
 
🤔 I mean, come on, if you're gonna hire someone to dig up dirt on famous people, isn't it kinda your responsibility to make sure they're not breaking any laws? 🙄 It's crazy that this guy was raking in the dough for years without even thinking twice about his methods. And now he's just shrugging like "oh well, I didn't think I was doing anything wrong"? 🤷‍♂️ That's some dodgy logic right there.

And what's really shady is that they tried to cover it up by changing the email address and all that jazz? 👀 Like, come on guys, you can't just sweep this under the rug. It's time for accountability! 💼 I'm not saying these people are saints or anything, but if they're gonna play dirty, they should at least own up to it.

I mean, I get it, we all need to make a buck, but there's gotta be some level of integrity involved. And now the court is getting to the bottom of this... hopefully we'll see some real change come out of this 🤞
 
This whole thing is just so... interesting 🤔. I mean, we're talking about these private investigators who can supposedly find people's personal info in minutes, and it raises so many questions about our society and the values we place on privacy. Like, what does it say about us that we think it's okay to use private investigators to dig up dirt on celebrities or anyone else? And what kind of system do we have in place to prevent this kind of thing from happening? It's crazy to me that someone like Portley-Hanks was able to just keep going with his methods for decades without getting caught.

And I feel bad for him, you know? He went bankrupt after the publisher stopped using him. Like, what did he do wrong? Was it really worth it to make $1m in a year or so? It makes me think about how we value money and success in our lives. Is it really all that important?

Anyway, I'm just curious to see how this whole thing plays out. Do the allegations hold any water? Is it really as "lurid" and "preposterous" as ANL is saying? 🤷‍♂️
 
🤔 So like I was reading about this guy Daniel Portley-Hanks who worked as a private detective for the Daily Mail and he's saying they did some shady stuff over the years 🤷‍♂️. He claims they used these techniques to get info on people without breaking any laws, but now he thinks it's unlawful 🚫. I mean, it's pretty wild that he was making a million bucks doing this kinda work and then went bankrupt when they dropped him 🤑. It's also crazy that they tried to cover it up by asking him to change his email address 📧.

I'm not sure what to make of the whole thing yet, but I do think it's suspicious that they're denying all allegations 😒. The fact that he was using a "database guy" approach to get info on people in minutes is pretty concerning 🕵️‍♂️. And the part about making a payment to a police officer for documents is just shady 💸. I guess we'll have to wait and see what happens next with this case 👀.
 
🤔 This whole thing sounds super shady 🤑. I mean, it's crazy that this dude worked for years using questionable methods and didn't think they were wrong 🙄. And now he's claiming he went bankrupt because they stopped paying him? 🤑 That just doesn't add up. The fact that he says he was asked to give up his licence in order to keep working is red flag ⚠️.

And what's with the "database guy" approach? 🤷‍♂️ Using someone's personal details without consent? That's just wrong 😝. It sounds like a classic case of info brokerism 📊, where they're making money off people's private info without any regard for ethics.

I'm not surprised that ANL is denying all allegations and calling it "lurid" and "preposterous" 😒. They have to protect their reputation somehow 👀. But if Portley-Hanks' claims are true, it's a serious breach of trust 🤝. The fact that Prince Harry, Elton John, and Elizabeth Hurley are involved just makes it even more disturbing 🙅‍♂️.

One thing's for sure: this case will be a wild ride 💥. Will we ever know the truth behind what really went down? 🤷‍♂️ Only time (and more evidence) will tell 🔍.
 
just seen this news and im literally shaking my head 😱 like what kind of stuff is going on here? £1m for doing all these shady investigations? that's just not right 🙅‍♂️ and if he was basically getting paid to break the law, that's even worse. and now he's claiming he didn't think it was a big deal at the time but clearly he did 😔 the fact that they tried to silence him by changing his email address is even more damning. ANL needs to come clean about what really went down here 👀
 
So many lessons can be learned here 🤯. First of all, we gotta talk about accountability - who holds people in power accountable for their actions? It seems like Daniel Portley-Hanks was doing shady stuff and he's now facing the music. But what's really interesting is that he thought his actions were okay at the time because they didn't feel "illegal" to him 🤔. That gotcha! We can all relate to thinking we're getting away with something, but the truth comes out later.

Another thing I want to talk about is power dynamics - who has access to what kind of information and how are those individuals held accountable? It's not just about the Daily Mail, it's a system that allows this kind of thing to happen. We need to make sure everyone is treated fairly and that our rights aren't being trampled on.

Lastly, I think we can all learn from Gavin Burrows' situation - will he give evidence from a secret location? That says a lot about the fear of repercussions when you're involved in something shady 🤫. It's not just about the law, it's about doing what's right and being willing to face the consequences.
 
🤣 this whole thing is just so cringeworthy 🙄 ... like, who tries to hide their shady past by claiming they used "database guy" methods 😂? and 79 years old, still trying to get in on the illicit private eye game 💁‍♂️. ANL's got some serious 'splainin' to do if they're denying all allegations... not buying it 🤑. Gavin Burrows, hiding in a secret location 🤐, sounds like a Bond villain plot 😜. And poor Daniel Portley-Hanks, went from being a million bucks to bankruptcy 💸... guess that's what happens when you play with fire 🔥.
 
this is wild lol i mean, $1m for buying houses and earning savings just to work for the daily mail? seems fishy to me. if he was getting paid so well for doing something that felt "legit" but turned out to be all wrong... shouldn't he've known better? or did they just pay him enough to ignore his conscience? 🤔
 
I gotta say, this is wild 🤯... I mean, who knew all these years that the Daily Mail was using private investigators like Daniel Portley-Hanks to gather info on celebrities? It's crazy how some people can just do whatever and then go bankrupt when they're done 😂. But seriously, it's not right that they were basically getting away with breaking the law all this time. I feel bad for Prince Harry, Elton John, and Elizabeth Hurley having to deal with all this drama. And wow, using a police officer to get documents on Jeffrey Epstein? That's some shady stuff 🕵️‍♂️. It'll be interesting to see how this whole thing plays out in court 👀.
 
Ugh I'm so done with all these rich folks using their money & influence to cover up their dirty secrets ! 🙄 like Portley-Hanks was just doing his job but somehow got blackmailed into not reporting what he knew because of the Daily Mail's connections . And ANL is totally playing dumb about it too . I mean come on , if you're gonna do something shady , at least have the decency to admit it instead of trying to sweep it under the rug . this whole thing reeks of corporate greed & the complete disregard for people's privacy . And what really gets my goat is that these celebs are now coming forward like they're victims . newsflash : if you're a public figure , your life is fair game .
 
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