The Royal Navy may have lost two more laptops that contained
data similar to the
one stolen last
week that contained the names, bank account details, and
passport details of some 600,000 people who had applied to join the
armed services, defence secretary Des Browne
told Parliament today.
Announcing a review of Ministry of Defence (MoD) security policy
Browne said, "An internal investigation by the MoD's head of
security had established that, in addition to the laptop stolen on
9 January, two further laptops potentially containing similar data
have been stolen."
Browne has asked Sir Edmund Burton, former deputy chief of the
Defence Staff (systems), to review the circumstances which led to
what the defence secretary called "systemic failures".
As happened in the wake of the
loss of the personal details of 25 million child benefit claimants
by HM Revenue & Customs (HRMC) in November, a senior
dedicated data protection officer has been appointed.
Browne said the MoD's head of security was now the sole
authority for granting security accreditation for IT systems. This
was to underscore the importance of security to MoD head
office.
He had initiated an internal review by MOD IT security experts
of all IT systems in use throughout MoD and the armed forces to
make sure that no other systems are at risk.
He said the MoD would be part of the
Cabinet Office-led review of data security that followed the
HMRC incident.
Browne was responding to the theft of a laptop that contained
personal information about potential recruits from the car of a
Royal Navy officer on the night of 9 January 2008 in
Birmingham.
Browne said West Midlands police, assisted by the Ministry of
Defence police, were investigating, and the Information
Commissioner had been informed.
"All similar laptops had been recalled from their users and
secured as an immediate precaution," he said.
Letters had been sent to all 3,700 whose bank details were
included in the database, and were now being sent to the 153,000
people who had applied to join the Royal Navy, the Royal Marines or
the Royal Air Force during the relevant periods, he said. Those
affected could call a free help line and e-mail address, he
said.
The navy was now considering action against the officer
concerned.