The official statement is as follows:
The Ministry of Defence is investigating the apparent theft of three computer hard drives from a secure facility at Innsworth in Gloucestershire.
Two of the drives are believed to have contained potentially sensitive personal data relating to personnel who served in the Royal Air Force in recent years; the third hard drive did not contain any personal data.
An investigation is being conducted by the MOD Police, with the support of Gloucestershire Police, and it would be inappropriate to give further details of the circumstances of the incident at this stage.
The theft of these hard drives from a secure location, where they were subject to physical protection standards consistent with the Data Handling Review, is being treated with great seriousness.
An urgent assessment is underway into the detailed nature of the data that was on the drives. There is no indication that the theft was motivated by a desire to obtain the data, nor that the data has been exploited maliciously in any way; but personal information on anyone serving or who has served in recent years in the RAF, Regular or Reservist, may have been compromised. The classification of individual documents is not believed to have been higher than RESTRICTED.
As the detailed assessment work progresses, the MOD will immediately notify any individuals for whom particularly sensitive information, such as financial details, was held and who may have been affected. In the meantime, concerned serving and former RAF personnel can get in touch via email –
[email protected] – or via a helpline (
0800 085 3600). This will be available from 1000 to 1600 on both Saturday 27 and Sunday 28 September, and 0700 to1900hrs in the normal working week.
This was posted by the Ministry of Defence. You can find a copy at:
Ministry of Defence | Defence News | Defence Policy and Business | MOD investigating Innsworth hard drive theft