British Navy Loses Laptop Containing Personnel Data
The laptop with personal information on about 600,000 people was stolen from an officer in the Royal Navy.
A laptop containing personal information on about 600,000 people was stolen from an officer in the Royal Navy, the U.K.'s Ministry of Defense said on Friday. The laptop contained information about new and potential recruits to the Royal Marines, the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force, and was stolen in Birmingham last week, the ministry said.
The stolen data includes passport details, national insurance numbers, family details and doctors' addresses for people who submitted an application to the sources, the ministry said. The laptop also contained bank details for at least 3,500 people. "The Ministry of Defence is treating the loss of this data with the utmost seriousness," it said in a statement.
It is writing to people whose bank details were on the laptop and has notified the Association for Payment Clearing Services to watch for unauthorized access, it said. The ministry is investigating the theft with the West Midlands Police. The laptop was stolen Jan. 10, but the ministry said it didn't disclose the incident immediately for fear of compromising the investigation. It decided to go public with the loss after media reports surfaced about it on Friday, it said.
The laptop was stolen during the night from the car of a junior Royal Navy officer, who now faces a possible court martial, according to a report in the London Times.
Source