Staff details on stolen laptops

5 Jun 2009

Laptops containing the personal details of thousands of civil servants have been stolen from Government offices in Northern Ireland.

The thefts at the Corporate Human Resources office at the Department of Finance and Personnel in central Belfast has prompted an urgent email alert to all the staff concerned.

Priority has been given to cases including bank details. Other data held on the 30,000 staff involved include names, addresses, National Insurance numbers and dates of birth.

The email says that, regarding cases involving bank details, "these individuals are being contacted separately and immediately with more detailed information and advice. Their banks have already been contacted."

The Department says that all the laptops are password protected in accordance with civil-service data-security procedures.

Says a spokesman: "The director of personnel for the Northern Ireland Civil Service has written to staff with more information on the recent break-in and will be issuing a statement in due course."