Phorm 'illegal' says policy group

Online advert system Phorm is illegal in the UK, the Foundation for Information Policy Research (FIPR) claim. BT, Talk Talk and Virgin have all signed up to use Phorm, which targets adverts to users based on web habits.

FIPR believes Phorm contravenes the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000, which protects users from unlawful interception of information. Phorm and BT have said the technology does not breach any UK laws.

Phorm's system works by "trawling" websites visited by users and then matches keywords from the content of the page to a profile. Users are then targeted with adverts that are more tailored to their interests on websites that have signed up to Phorm's technology.