• Media Enquiries

    07505 448925(24hr)

Wigan Council loses the data of 200 disabled residents

Wigan Well, the headline says it all, really – but here's the story. In sum:

Wigan Council believes a memory stick containing hundreds of confidential details fell out of an employee's pocket

To which I'd say, (1) This was back in January – shouldn't that be ex-employee? (2) Doesn't this say something to those who want more government databases?

You'll note that we have a "losing data" tag on the site. It's merited because it happens so often. 

By Alex Deane

Posted on February 5, 2010 by Alex Deane Posted in Databases, Losing data
  • startledcod

    What was the memory stick with the data doing in an employee’s pocket in the first place. Its just so cavalier.

  • opsimath

    I don’t suppose they had even taken elementary steps to encrypt the information either. How can we trust any of these data-careless lunatics? And just wait until the councils have our NI numbers, signatures and so on just to vote – that should really be fun – NOT.

  • Paul Chappell

    As far as I can gather, using Windows 7, a memory stick can be encrypted, making the data usless outside of the organisation.

  • LeChiffre

    If we are asked for NI number, date of birth and signature to get the right to vote it will lead to a crescendo of town hall snooping (dustbins, school catchment areas, parking fines etc) and then to more revenue-gathering as local councils follow DVLA’s lead and flog our details to the private sector. To avoid identity fraud arising from lost memory sticks and other failures, I will either have to stop voting or, if I can, provide decoy data: eg using a ’special’ signature for dealings with the council (as opposed to my usual signature); give dates US-style such as 9/11/2010 for 11th September; and muddle up my NI number for instance making the final ‘P’ look like a ‘D’

  • redacted

    Information security is achieved by limiting the number of people who have access to information, and ensuring that they are held accountable for access to it.
    Today’s trend of making information accessible to more and more minor officials via computer networks is inherently insecure by nature. There is an innocent assumption that technology can impose security despite human nature, but as we see here, if the people who have access do not behave correctly, the technological security systems are irrelevant. The more people who have access, the more chance that one of them will be careless, corrupt or naive. A secure system is only as secure as its weakest link. Criminals and snoops know this very well. That’s why they prefer to attack the humans with social engineering gambits rather than waste time trying to crack cryptographic security, which is also possible, but its the hard way to do it.

  • Sandy

    http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-1215200/Forgetful-patients-fitted-microchips-remind-pills.html
    I still think this is what it is all about. They want is all chipped…and not the knid that go with fried eggs lol

  • http://securitysystemslasvegas.com/ Las Vegas Security Systems

    Secure Your Home or Business Today With Our Premier Security Systems! Best Priced Las Vegas Security Systems!

  • http://apps.d-law.com/DLawPortal/faces/feature.jsp Background check

    Background check