U.K. In Uproar Over Massive Data Loss

Tax Agency Says Personal Information Of Over 25M People Was Lost In The Mail

(CBS)  This story was written and reported by CBS News technology analyst Larry Magid.

---

A major data breach in the United Kingdom could expose the personal data of more than 25 million people - nearly half the country's population. The data relates to details about families with children, including names, dates of birth, addresses, bank account information and insurance records.

The information was contained on two computer discs which were lost when they were sent to an audit office by means of an internal mail service, reportedly by a junior employee of the British Revenue and Customs Office.

The loss was disclosed to the House of Commons on Monday by British Chancellor of the Exchequer Alistair Darling - who leads Britain's equivalent of the Treasury Department - who said the discs were sent via ordinary mail between government departments.

Members of Parliament, according to the Times of London, "gasped as they heard the scale of the catastrophic breach of security guidelines."

The Times says Darling, who admitted that the tax agency made the same mistake several times in the past six months, said he was informed of the security breach on Nov. 10th and four days later asked police to investigate.

The chairman of the tax agency, Paul Gray, resigned Tuesday as a result of the security snafu, which has also generated criticism of Darling in his leadership of the Treasury.

"Let us be clear about the scale of this catastrophic mistake," George Osbourne, a prominent member of the Opposition who serves as Shadow Chancellor, told The Times. "His department has compromised the security and safety of every family in the land."

Authorities say there is no evidence that the missing discs have fallen into hands of criminals.

Considering the percentage of the British population affected, this is an enormous data breach and, because it involves children, it’s particularly worrisome.

"This is a source of great worry on a number of different levels," said John Carr, a British technology safety expert, in an interview with CBS News. "If the names, addresses, ages, dates of birth of all 15 million children were to get into the hands of sex offenders, for example, then who knows how they would exploit that data."

They would certainly have a list of targets and know quite a lot about them.

Carr also worries about the banking system. "The British banking industry is almost in meltdown, because the discs also got the details of the bank accounts of all the families as well."

This is, said Carr, "the third breach from our equivalent of your I.R.S., so there are all kinds of questions being asked about how they are handling sensitive data."

The government, said Carr, "delayed the announcement for four days in order to give the British banking industry time to prepare for a deluge of telephone calls and inquiries from members of the public."

One concern about losing a database with both names of family members and banking data is that family member names are often used as passwords by individuals (although, for security reasons, that is never a good idea). Carr said that the banking industry has issued a security alert recommending people immediately change any passwords associated with family member names.

Barclays Bank UK has set up a customer hotline to advise depositors about security precautions and has posted on its website a notice asking for "our customers' understanding if this involves us asking more questions than normal to identify that a customer is who they say that they are."

The bank’s website further reassures customers "that there is no evidence that the data is in the hands of fraudsters. A British banking industry safety website, banksafeonline.org.uk, advises depositors to be "vigilant and follow existing security advice to help you spot and stop ID fraud being committed using your details. This includes always checking your statements, opening post and checking bills, and if you spot an unfamiliar transaction you should contact your bank, building society or service provider immediately."

The site further states that "If you are the innocent victim of banking fraud as a result of this incident, as a UK customer, you are protected by The Banking Code, which means you should not suffer any financial loss as a consequence."

[jetranger7]

Hey-Hey-Hey Just hold up a minute there guys, its NO Big Deal, it was just Ol'' BUSH & CHENEY attempting to SPY on Americans and one of them pushed the wrong button, they meant to push the USA button but Cheney hit the UK-Button his bi-focals got in the way,, its NO Big deal we have been dealing with these 2 Degenerates the last 7 years, ya they Suck, but we have some very Special plans for them !!

[ndg1979]

"Personal Information" ranks as high in my book as "Military Intelligence". Information is not personal any more. Now the UK has a chance to feel what it is like to be an American. WE have been living with this for years now and it doesn''t matter who or what you are here - child, senior citizen or military veteran - all of your information is available to anyone willing to pay for it.

[samrensho]

I''d be willing to bet that those responsible in the UK for this data loss have already received job offers from the dept. of homeland security.

[nwihoosier]

The combined IQ of sam, ndg and jet is about 100.
No, that''s NOT good, boys.

[watcher269-2009]

So what - its just Brits. Who Cares - its not like they''re real people or anything - after all - they were are enemies once - thus Thanks Giving! Yeah!!!!!

[greeneyes222]

I am so tired of every topic generating a response involving Bush/Cheney/etc.

This is an awful situation, but it happens here too, whether it be businesses, banks, or the Federal government, to say nothing of the security risk of states farming out administrative duties overseas. The biggest difference appears to be that Britain is holding someone accountable, while here everyone sort of slaps their wrist and lets them go.

If people are going to trade in our personal data, they need to be held truly accountable when we''re put at risk, and I don''t mean some paltry little fine or six months'' of credit watch service.

[myidoncbs]

nwihoosier, the 3 posters you denigrated all seem a bit wittier than you. So, you''ve heard about IQ. Big deal! Simply calling someone stupid is not a valid counter argument to what they have said. Apparently, you don''t have anything else to offer. If this were a contest, you''d have lost.

[gunshack1]

Everyone take a deep breath and relax. The two computer discs are in the bottom drawer of some clerk who was on vacation when all this came to light. They have forgotten about receiving them. The discs will turn up in a year or two when the clerk quits or gets fired. Happens all the time.

[bombadil4]

It''s basically too late to turn back the clock now. But we should remember that sensitive information used to be kept in locked files in a locked room in a locked building. Often the building was equipped with alarms, surveillance, and human security. In other words, you had to be a *** good thief to get at it and the thief would be somewhat constrained by how much he could carry out or how long he could stay to photograph files. Now any computer nerd from literally any location in the world can potentially get access to millions of files with a fes clicks of the mouse or a few key strokes. As for "losing" files, again the physical bulk of paper pretty much precluded devastating losses like this. Here a small mishap with two computer discs is enough to compromise info on millions of people. Welcome to the future

[finewoven]

The two computer discs are in the bottom drawer of some clerk who was on vacation when all this came to light.
Posted by gunshack1 at 10:15 AM : Nov 21, 2007

Most likely, as the Royal Post was on strike within the past two months. Someone just lost it.

[dan9111]

Obviously their concern is clearly not that data "was lost". I am sure there is a backup. The concern is that it might be "gained" by people they don''t trust. It is about time the security profession call things by their rightful names.

[forthepeopl1]

ok people in the uk you better take all your money and run..run very very fast.

[trogdoar]

Owned!

[dan9111]

One would think Ron Paul would be relavant to the discussion before such detailed info is presented. The UK will crumble soon too, once they realize murderers and tyrants are running their government too. Still it is a waste of time to think voting for anyone will make a difference.

[logicanada]

Hope the Brits take better care with their nuclear launch protocols.

[sageprophet]

ARE WE A NATION OF LAWS?
Consider the Patriot Act. The Law is 342 pages long, or 57,000 words, making it a bit longer than Dostoevsky''s "Notes from Underground" or, if you''re partial to pigs, about twice the size of Orwell''s "Animal Farm." The Patriot Act is the reigning champion of our government''s recent un-American activities. When it was first paraded before Congress and the Senate following the 9/11 attacks, few Members, other than Congressman, Ron Paul dared to vote against it. Most in Congress simply gave it their rubber-stamp of approval, without ever reading it. Why bother? It was, after all, named the "USA Patriot Act." It must be a good thing. Right? Now in effect, the Law wrecks a generation''s worth of constitutional protections against government snooping, legalizing police-state tactics in searches and seizures, criminalizing certain forms of speech and political activity, and opening the way for the mistreatment of foreigners in government custody and wholesale expulsions and imprisonment. It is a repugnant, unnecessary Law that goes against the very principles its name wrongly implies. Yet, it remains unchecked and unbalanced by public opinion, Lawmakers or the Courts. So, yes, we''re a nation of Laws. But the Laws aren''t much to speak of when they''re designed to hoodwink the public to win its docility. Neither is public responsibility much to speak of these days when its docility is secured with nothing more than a ploy-riddled play on the word "patriot."

[keithle1]

Hey idiot posters! Post comments relevant to the topic at hand. Instead of your own precious commentary about American politics, your belly button, what your cat had for dinner last night, etc. In other words, everything BUT the topic.

[michellem99-2009]

I read this on the BBC site. I am apalled that yer forget there are British blood in us Americans who are from New Endland..They are people too. It is not right that their children and poor are robbed of the pounds they need to live. People say AMERICANS are rude. True. This is Thanksgivens Day we Americans gives thanks. Let hope they are found and they did not fall in the wrongs hands..

[missingamerica]

If it is a true data loss - and not just copies floating around - the Brits could always ask us for a copy of our copy.

[shanev137]

what a moronic idiot...why would you put something like that in the freaken mailbox.

[undermyboot]

SageProphet is NOT A SUPPORTER OF RON PAUL. This poster is here to make board members angry over all the SPAM so that they will NOT support Ron Paul.

[undermyboot]

"TRUST THE GOVERNMENT" say the Republicons who want the Government to possess every bit of information about the life of you and your family.

This UK incident is what happens when the Government OWNS YOU. It makes you less safe and less secure. Of course this does not stop the despots in power in the USA from stealing more power to spy on Americans in violation of the law and Constitution. They just care about their POWER and nothing else.

Let Americans observe this little lesson from the UK and wake up to fight the creeping tyranny that is an all-knowing all-watching government with no REAL limitations on its power.

[lastdance4]

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[chrisross2008]

Dear billysmith6

How can you possibly offer comments like that about a country that, I assume from your message, you have never visited!? With a blind sighted and arrogant attitude like that the UK can do with out you visiting. Having lived in both countries I fear it is you Sir that is the one who is brainwashed and the only propaganda is, what you have succumbed to, reporting %u2018evidence%u2019 that has lead you to such a foolish conclusion!

[michellem99-2009]

Is it any wonder America is hated. I have met very nice British people in America. They are good people.
I am a Maine born living in the west. This is sad.

[bradosol]

billysmith6

I''m British and was interested in your insulting comments.

You see, we''ve been badmouthed so often that, far from getting red-faced and offended, some of us are cool enough to to view such rubbish objectively.

Unfortunately, your remarks come way down the list, below some 19th Century U.S. Presidents, certainly way below old enemies like Philip II of Spain, and a hundred miles below Uncle Adolf and Il Duce of 20th Century fame!

But keep trying.

[dangeroushen]

bradosol,,Well said old boy.

[tomflint69]

Awe, the British are such sheep anyway. The rich just keep them drunk and let them see a dentist every ten years and they are happy. The masses reside on about 5% of the island, but unlike Japan which is 90% mountains and uninhabitable. The rich own UK and the masses are restricted to small bits of land on the island and pay all the taxes to upkeep the rich''''s estates.

Nice people, but just more brainwashed than the corn-syrup milk-derivative US fed cow people. At least UK has better average education levels, although much of it is propoganda.

If anyone wants to ever know why UK has the highest exchange rates in the world (2:1) to US, its because of their taxing any and every thing that comes within a hundred miles of its coast every few feet the good travels in their country. A place I''''ll never visit because I''''m not that gd stupid!
---------------------------------
Posted by billysmith6 at 11:19 PM : Nov 22, 2007


haa haaa... Billysmith6 knows it all? really? how?

[tomflint69]

dangeroushen,bradosol and chrisross200 are Brits! lol
....why not on the restricted forum of BBC World website?

[dangeroushen]

tomflint69,,The BBC forum is moderated by PC clowns, CBS is far better.

[jowand]

Is it any wonder America is hated. I have met very nice British people in America. They are good people.
I am a Maine born living in the west. This is sad.
Posted by MichelleM99 at 04:26 AM : Nov 23, 2007

America is hated by leftists and Islamists, get a life.

[fairprophet]

WERE HAVING A TEA PARTY! YOU''RE INVITED
As we all know, freedom isn''t free in this country. Therefore, in the wake of our successful fundraising event of November 5th, in which we all came together to raise $4.2 million dollars for Ron Paul''s campaign, we''ve set yet another date for an even bigger fundraiser. This one will take place on December 16th: a very important date for people who love freedom and hate tyranny to ring the Liberty Bell, and let our sold-out, globalist, political ****** and their mainstream media enablers know that good Americans are mad as hell, and that we''re not going to take it anymore. December 16th is the 224th aniversary of The Boston Tea Party: an act of protest by the American colonists against the tyranny of Great Britain where the Sons of Liberty boarded British ships and dumped crates of tea overboard into Boston Harbor. It was a key event which helped to spark the American Revolution, and we hope this event will, likewise, add additional spark to our own 21st Century political revolution to restore peace, prosperity and freedom to our Republic by helping elect a President whose record of adherance to The Constitution is unmatched by anyone in American politics. Please join us this December 16th for the largest one-day political donation event in history. Our goal is to bring together 100,000 people to donate $100 each, creating a one day donation total of $10,000,000. The time to act is now. The time for Ron Paul is NOW! TeaParty07.com

[fairprophet]

RON PAUL IS THE NEW WAY
What we need is a President who will show us the way. Not the old way. Not the same way, but a NEW way. Think about this for a minute. What if we pulled all of our troops out of South Korea? They''ve been there for 50+ years. What if we quit worrying about Iran, but instead, realized that its having a nuclear weapon will not mean the end of the world? What if we pulled all of our troops out of the Middle-East, and brought them all home? What if we realistically addressed the National Debt, and paid attention to REALLY DOING SOMETHING about stopping illegal immigration? These are the ideas of Presidential candidate, Ron Paul. He''s a ten term Congressman and a physician who has delivered over 4,000 babies. He''s an intellectual who''s published four books, three of which are devoted entirely to sound economics and one to foreign policy. He was raised on a dairy farm in Pennsylvania as a pious Lutheran, but now he attends a Baptist church. Paul is given to mulling things over morally. Whenever he recollects the helicopter pilots he treated as an Air Force Flight Surgeon (Captain) during the Vietnam War, a war which he now says was "totally unnecessary and illegal," he laments, "They were gung-ho. I''ve often thought about how many of those people never came back." Candidates with the high level of personal integrity and proven track record of adherence to The Constitution, Congressman Paul has always demonstrated only come around once in a lifetime, if we''re lucky.

[fairprophet]

U.S. WAR WITH IRAN?
When I consider the prospect of a War with Iran, I wonder whether or not another major power might be inclined to side with Iran and oppose us. 10% of China''s exports go to Iran and 12% of Germany''s. Also, many countries, including China, are heavily dependent on the 2,836,000 barrels of oil Iran exports everyday. Not a problem. I''m sure those folks won''t mind riding bikes until the war is over. As far as the Iranians are concerned, I''m sure they''re just dying (no pun intended) to be invaded, er, I mean "liberated" by Americans, considering the horrid 70% approval rating of Ahmadinejad and the terrible $8,700 gross domestic product per capita there (8.6% better than China). I''m sure we''ll be welcomed in the streets after we "shock and awe" their all important looking buildings to Jahannum and back. When I compare U.S. military numbers with Iran''s, what I find is truly alarming. The U.S. has 2.37 million soldiers ready for combat. Let''s compare that with little ol'' Iran, which has more soldiers available for combat than any country in the entire world. Actually, Iran has more combat-ready soldiers (11.7 million) than China and Russia combined. Talk about hell! The bottom line is that America can''t even handle Iraq. At one point, we thought we could rush in, smite some nubs with dirks and bubble on back home in time to catch the next season of American Idol, but it didn''t quite work-out that way. Did it? With Iran, reality is going to hurt a lot more.

[fairprophet]

YOU LIVE IN INTERESTING TIMES
America is tipping back way too far in her easy chair. Something BIG is about to happen, and I predict this upcoming 2008 Presidential Election will be extremely pivotal. I''m not going to name any candidates. You probably already know who my favorite one is. But let me make my point absolutely clear: If you think times are boring, think again. If you think the future is predictable, think again. My advice to everyone who reads this is to be thoughtful. Trust only that wisdom which is your own. 90% of mainstream media in this country is controlled by fewer than 20 different organizations. Unfortunately, they, like the sold-out political ****** who pretend tp serve us in Washington, were bought and paid for by the military-industrial-pharmacutical complex decades ago. Therefore, mainsteam media will paint pictures they want to paint, and people will open their minds to pictures they want to see. So, be skeptical. Be wise. Research issues and talking points on your own, and share what you learn with those you love. The future of your family tree may lay in the balance.

[fairprophet]

TO APATHETIC AMERICANS
Voter disenfranchisement and apathy infects the heart of our Republic. Get off your couch, put your remote control down, and become active in your nation''s political process. The pathetically few people that do vote in this country, a.k.a., "the ruling class", who currently get to decide under what kind of conditions (and Laws) you and your family will live, are certainly involved. I can assure you of that. In fact, the ruling class would be much happier if you would just continue to stay home and watch TV in your pleasantly distracted and brainwashed, stupor. That way they can continue to elect their political ****** to office, and continue to maintain their grip on 100% of the political power they currently own in this country. If you voted (God Forbid), it would cancel-out their vote, and they would lose control. They can''t have that. Now can they? If you don''t vote, my friends, you''re nothing but an unwashed "Pleb" to those that do, and the ruling class should rightfully consider themselves superior to you in every way. They do, after all, have all the power, while you have none. If you''re too apathetic and powerless to do anything for yourself more time-consuming than driving down to Mickey D''s to buy a milk shake in order to sieze control of your life, and your country''s destiny, then perhaps you deserve to be ruled over like the "Pleb" that you then are. The time to act is now. The time for political revolution has come. The time for Ron Paul is NOW!

[fairprophet]

MORE TROOPS AND VETERANS SUPPORT RON PAUL
On Veteran''s Day, Republican presidential candidate Ron Paul today addressed a crowd of over 5,000 enthusiastic veterans and supporters in Philadelphia. The Veteran''s Day weekend rally took place at Independence Mall. Thousands of veterans and their friends and families heard country music superstar Rockie Lynne open the event for the Texas congressman. John Holland, the founder of a leading advocacy organization for troops, veterans, and POW/MIAs, delivered an enthusiastic endorsement of Congressman Paul, before the congressman addressed the crowd. The rally coincided with the launch of the Veterans for Paul Coalition, a group composed entirely of American war veterans. "Dr. Paul''s support among veterans is extremely high," said Paul campaign spokesman Joe Seehusen. "These great patriots who have fought for our country know that only Dr. Paul''s foreign policy of peace and secure borders can guarantee true national security, and they want him fighting for our country''s freedom." Congressman Paul was himself a Captain in the Air Force who served as a flight surgeon during the "totally unnecessary and illegal" Vietnam war. He receives more campaign contributions from former and active military and military affiliates than all of the other 2008 presidential candidates combined.

[fairprophet]

A FOREIGN POLICY OF FREEDOM
All of the other presidential candidates want to continue our illegal police action in Iraq indefinitely, and they do not rule out a preemptive (nuclear) first strike against Iran. Conversely, Ron Paul voted against our (undeclared) war in Iraq, which was sold to us with lies. The area is more dangerous now than when we entered it. We destroyed a regime hated by our direct enemies--the jihadists, and created thousands of new recruits for them. The war in Iraq has cost more than 3,500 American lives and almost a trillion dollars. We need a leader in the White House who will ensure this never happens again. Both Jefferson and Washington warned us about entangling ourselves in the affairs of other nations. Today, we have 750 foreign bases and troops in 130 countries. We are spread so thin that we have too few troops defending America. And now, there are new calls for a draft. We can continue to fund and fight no-win police actions around the globe, or we can refocus on securing our borders against illegal aliens who are invading us from the South. No war should ever be fought without a Declaration of War voted upon by the Congress, as required by The Constitution. Under no circumstances should the U.S. again go to war as the result of a resolution that comes from an unelected, foreign body, such as the United Nations. Too often, we give foreign aid and intervene on behalf of governments that are despised. Then, we become despised.

[lastdance4]

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