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| Version 1 | Version 2 |
|---|---|
| Police probe theft of MoD laptop | Police probe theft of MoD laptop |
| (10 minutes later) | |
| West Midlands police are investigating the theft of a laptop from a Royal Navy officer which held personal details of 600,000 people, it has been confirmed. | West Midlands police are investigating the theft of a laptop from a Royal Navy officer which held personal details of 600,000 people, it has been confirmed. |
| Police said the laptop was taken from a vehicle parked overnight in the Edgbaston area of Birmingham. | |
| The laptop contains data including passport numbers, National Insurance numbers and bank details. | |
| They relate to people who had expressed an interest in, or joined, the Royal Navy, Royal Marines and the RAF. | |
| The ministry said it was treating the theft with the "utmost seriousness". | The ministry said it was treating the theft with the "utmost seriousness". |
| The police said they received a report that the laptop had been stolen from a car parked in the Edgbaston area of the city on 10 January and that the theft had occurred overnight. | |
| Extensive records | |
| "The information held is not the same for every individual," the MoD statement said. | |
| "In some cases, for casual enquiries, the record is no more than a name. | |
| "But for those who progressed as far as submitting an application to join the Forces, extensive personal data may be held, including passport details, National Insurance numbers, drivers' licence details, family details, doctors' addresses and National Health Service numbers. | |
| "The Ministry of Defence is treating the loss of this data with the utmost seriousness." | |
| The MoD said it was writing to 3,500 people whose bank details were on the laptop's database. | |
| It said it was working with the Association for Payment Clearing Services to inform the relevant banks and ensure that accounts affected are "flagged for scrutiny against unauthorised access". | |
| More information and advice can be obtained by emailing recruitdata@check.mod.uk from 1000GMT on Saturday 19 January. |