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Andrew Colwell, marketing director at contact centre operator LBM, said the case would plant doubts in the minds of consumers when dealing with call centres overseas. "This will undermine customer confidence. The most efficient use of marketing spend lies in keeping call centres onshore," he said.

A spokesperson for HSBC confirmed it was taking legal action against one of its former data operators after irregularities were uncovered by the Bangalore centre's own security teams. It is believed that £233,000 was taken from UK customers' accounts.

"Stories such as these heighten public awareness about data protection," said Rosemary Smith, director of data protection consultancy Opt-4 and vice-chair of the Direct Marketing Association (DMA). "It could lead to increased levels of opt-out and decreased levels of registration."

Customer dissatisfaction with overseas operators has become a concern for the industry and insiders fear the public is continuing to lose faith in services they receive from outside the UK.

John Price, managing director of telemarketing company Price Direct and chairman of the DMA Telemarketing Council, believes more investment should be made in customers and lifetime value. "We've had to bite our tongues for a long time. It's now time to be a little more forthright. Customer care is not something you should do as cheaply as you can," he said.

News of the HSBC arrest comes just weeks after energy supplier Powergen announced it was bringing back all its call centre activity to the UK, citing customer dissatisfaction as the motivation. "India was a lower-cost option. However, we'd prefer to offer a higher level of customer service," said a Powergen spokesperson.

A spokesperson for Unison, the union representing Powergen's workers, said: "It's a false economy to send out this work internationally. People overseas don't always have the necessary knowledge."

Colwell agreed, saying: "Off-shore does have its place but as soon as you start to engage in complex communications, the quality of service suffers."

The Information Commissioner's Office could hold HSBC accountable if it is found to have breached the Data Protection Act. The bank said the security measures imposed in its Indian centres were as stringent those in the UK. It added that UK data was stored locally and accessed remotely by Indian data operators only when necessary.