FORMER INDEPENDENT NEWS and Media (INM) Ireland chief executive Joe Webb is taking legal action against the company. 

Legal action was filed by Webb’s solicitor in the High Court yesterday. 

Webb was one of a number of staff impacted by the data breach at INM in 2018. The breach saw the emails of a number of journalists and senior staff at INM allegedly accessed by an external company.

The scandal prompted action from the Data Protection Commissioner, Helen Dixon, who promised to investigate the suspected data breach, while the National Union of Journalists also called for an explanation of what happened. 

In April 2018, it was revealed that 40,000 emails belonging to Webb may have been sourced during the alleged data interrogation. The emails apparently went back to 1999. 

Webb was one the so-called #INM19 – one of the 19 people whose data was allegedly interrogated.

Originally from Ballyhaunis in Mayo, Webb is a former chief executive of IMN’s Irish division.

He took over in 2009 before leaving to join Dunnes Stores as the chief financial officer.

Murphy Coady Solicitors, who are representing Webb in his action, did not respond to a request for comment from TheJournal.ie. 

In March, the Irish Times reported that another former chief executive at INM, Gavin O’Reilly, had begun legal action against the company.

Karl Brophy, the former director of corporate affairs, is also involved in legal action against INM.