Friday, July 18, 2008

MoD admits laptop theft is double what it thought...

Over the past few days in Parliament, the Ministry of Defence has made some quite revealing admissions about data security and computer loss. For a start they have managed to have 87 USB removable storage devices stolen or lost which have contained classified material since 2004.

However, it is on the subject of laptops that the seriously worrying data is. In January 2008 the MoD said, in a written answer, that the total number of stolen laptops since 2004 was 347. However, yesterday it was revealed that after a review of the process of reporting they've actually had 658 laptops stolen.

That's nearly double the original figure. Now you'd expect a department like the MoD, which has access to seriously classified information, would be both good on security and crucially good at tracking issues like this. however, it is only as a result of a review after the HMRC debacle that the true figures came to light.

Makes you wonder what the figures for the other departments are truly like if the MoD's are so widely out doesn't it?

2 comments:

Mulligan said...

I might be able to help PC Plod here, as I vividly remember recently seeing a blog entry from someone who pictured a load of laptops.

Can't remember where though.

Anyway since crime is all a figment of the public's imagination (apparently) perhaps they just evaporated.

Anonymous said...

sold on ebay not stolen by HM forces if my son in law is telling the truth there is little or no comeback so all profit.