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Councils have defended their handling of sensitive data, after criticism by the information commissioner. A group of councils was accused of ‘sloppy' practice, together with Whitehall departments and the private sector. Detailing 197 breaches, including 26 by local authorities, commissioner, Richard Thomas, warned lives could be put at risk in the worst cases, and described some losses as ‘toxic'. The report came in the same week as Sheffield City Council revealed it had lost a computer disk containing the details of hundreds of pensioners, and in another case elsewhere, a memory stick containing sensitive details was found in a pub car park. There have been 277 reports to the commissioner, split between 80 in the private sector and 197 from the public sector. The NHS and other health bodies registered 75, followed by 28 with central government, 26 by local authorities, and 47 by other public sector bodies. Mr Thomas said: ‘The flow of data breaches and sloppy information handling continues. We have already seen examples where data loss or abuse has led to fake credit card transactions, witnesses at risk of harm or intimidation, offenders at risk from vigilantes, fake tax credit applications, falsified Land Registry records and mortgage fraud. The number of breaches is serious and worrying.' He added a warning which could stir the debate over ID cards. ‘Holding huge collections of personal data brings significant risks. The more databases set up and the more information exchanged, the greater the risk of things going wrong.' Sheffied City Council chief executive, John Mothersole, said his authority was now strengthening its data protection. He said: ‘This breach is a loud and clear example of the need to make sure we do all we can to avoid such incidents.'

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WHITEHALL

Authorities challenge claim

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