April 30 (Bloomberg) -- Italy's Finance Ministry today published online statements of official incomes for all citizens who paid taxes in 2005, only to shut down the function due to concerns about privacy.

A ministry Web site was bombarded by Italians curious to see what their neighbors or favorite actors declared as income, making it often impossible later in the day to download spreadsheets with the name, date of birth, total income and amount each taxpayer paid.

``This is a matter of transparency, of democracy,'' said outgoing Deputy Finance Minister Vincenzo Visco. ``I don't see any problem. The whole world does this. Just watch any American TV show and you'll see.''

The country's regulator for privacy issues shut down the diffusion of the information today, Ansa news agency reported.

Visco led outgoing Prime Minister Romano Prodi's crackdown on tax evasion, yielding 9.3 billion euros ($14.5 billion) in extra revenue last year. Premier-elect Silvio Berlusconi has vowed to continue the fight against tax evasion, while at the same time he said repeatedly during his election campaign that Italians had a right not to pay because the state taxes them too much.

The release of the data kicked up a flurry of reactions, mostly negative, from consumer groups, politicians and other commentators. Beppe Grillo, a comedian and political activist, was alarmed.

``This is pure folly,'' Grillo said, according to Ansa news agency. ``They're supplying criminals with our income information and they're telling them where we live. It's too dangerous to pay taxes. It's better to be convicted for tax evasion than be stabbed in a heist.''

Guido Crosetto, a lawmaker close to Berlusconi, said that handing income information out to everyone amounts to ``gossip'' and not policy.

``This won't help the country or taxpayers,'' Crosetto said, according to Ansa. ``It'll allow one to see what a co- worker or a neighbor makes, and just add to the problems the country is facing.''

The declared earnings of companies were also published on the Web site today.

To contact the reporters on this story: Steve Scherer in Rome at scherer@bloomberg.net

Last Updated: April 30, 2008 11:51 EDT