Manchester council's school data breach

Manchester City Council has been reprimanded over the loss of two laptops which contained sensitive personal information on teachers and workers at local schools.

Neither of the laptops were physically secured to desks in Manchester Town Hall. One of the machines held personal details about 1,754 employees at local schools.

Chief exec of Manchester City Council, Sir Howard Bernstein, signed a promise to encrypt laptops and other removable devices in future. The council chief also promised to apply security policies that mean laptops and other devices are locked away or secured to desks.

Data privacy watchdogs at the Information Commissioner's Office criticised the council for carelessness with personal data, and for clear violations of the Data Protection Act. Any future transgressions by the council could result in enforcement action by the ICO.

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