3 UK has apologised to a customer to whom it had sent a phone containing pornographic self-portraits thought to be of its previous owner. CNET (NSDQ: CNET) UK blogger Rory Reid wrote he upgraded his existing 3 handset to a Nokia (NYSE: NOK) E65 - “containing all the previous owner’s data”. “Most disturbingly, the phone contained a close-up, high-resolution image of a naked, erect penis. Just imagine the outcome if my 10-year-old sister had asked to check out her big brother’s funky new WiFi-enabled phone?”

A 3 UK spokesperson told paidContent:UK: “We’re taking this seriously.  We’re grateful to the customer for highlighting the issue.  We’ve apologised to him and are replacing the handset concerned. We’re also checking our processes and doing all we can to make sure that events like this don’t happen in the future.”

Reid also highlighted privacy implications: “Within minutes I had determined his full name, home phone number, who he banks with, his place of employment, his local pub, the places he DJs at the weekend and the name and phone number of his partner.”