London, Sept. 1: Online auction house eBay is to be probed over complaints that it is making it difficult for customers to remove personal details from its website.

The Information Commissioner has been asked to rule whether the website is in breach of the Data Protection Act.

The investigation follows a complaint from the rights organisation Privacy International which claims that only the most diligent and skilled Internet customers can work out how to delete the details.

Accounts on eBay contain personal data such as bank details, addresses, past purchases and phone numbers.

Yesterday, eBay denied that it was being deliberately obstructive, insisting that instructions for deleting accounts were on its website.

Privacy International’s director, Simon Davies, said eBay was simply a test case. Removing accounts from other sites such as Friends Reunited was just as difficult.