Over the last few months there has been "massive" security breaches within the Inteligence services, HM revenue and customs, and others, in the UK. It has made a laughing stock out of the so-called "data protection act 1998" which is an act (amended so many times) supposedly to give the consumer / citizen extra powers and confidentiality when handing over personal details, It defines a legal basis for the handling in the UK of information relating to living people. It is the main piece of legislation that governs the Protection of personal data. This happened on wednesday: A top intelligence official left a file with secret documents about Iraq and al Qaeda on a train, in an embarrassing government security breach that was exposed on Wednesday. A passenger found the orange folder on a train and handed it in to the BBC, which said it contained top secret documents on Iraq and al Qaeda. The Cabinet Office acknowledged the incident and said it had called in a police investigation. "The documents were secret. They were in the possession of a senior intelligence official who works in the Cabinet Office. They were lost on a train," a Cabinet Office spokesman said. "They were retrieved by a member of the public who handed them to the BBC," he said. "When the official realised what had happened, he reported it immediately to the Cabinet Office. We called the police in and they launched an investigation." A police spokeswoman confirmed that the counter-terrorism command of London's police force was carrying out the probe. The Cabinet Office declined to comment on the contents of the missing file. But the BBC said they contained two reports, one on Iraq's security forces and one on al Qaeda. BBC Security Correspondent Frank Gardner at one point waved what he said were the documents on air. In a subsequent report he said that he had turned them over to police officers. He said the passenger who found the documents had given them to a local BBC office, which phoned him to have a look. "As soon as I saw 'UK Top Secret', I thought: 'Wow. This is important'," he said. "It was marked top secret. It reveals what the government knows about al Qaeda's capabilities, and more importantly, its vulnerabilities." Government sources suggested that the leak was embarrassing but would not actually hurt Britain's security. But the news will hurt Brown, who has already been stung by accusations of lax security after a civil servant lost computer disks containing the names, addresses and bank details of 25 million people in the mail last year. In January the Ministry of Defence reported it had lost a laptop containing personal data on 600,000 recruits. Brown, whose popularity has plunged since he took over from Tony Blair last year, is promoting plans to roll out a national identity card system, and opponents of the measure often cite the government's poor record of keeping data secure. This is getting so frustrating: National ID card.hahahahahah Dont make me laugh Yea i want a dictatorship to carry my details around on a train and then leave them there, while he finishes his sandwich?
I don't believe that he was reading a hard copy UK TOP Secret document on public transport. Several years ago I was on a train to work and across from me this 50+ year old male started reading NATO Confidential material, in English. so I couldn't resist but start reading what I could, then this bloke gets all indignant that I was reading them too. So I gave him a big smile and thank him for sharing the latest info on ?????? with me and anyone else who can read English, and as an ex Soldier I'm a signatory to the Official Secrets Act, which seemed to piss him off even more. I get to work and surf the web to a certain web page and start checking a few things, and decide to bubble the Pratt, so I sent them an e-mail. with my details and what transpired. I never did get a reply from them, but I know of a German Army Senior Officer ,who retired shortly thereafter. Tony
I know mate its a bloody joke aint it! I was under the impressions that this "type" of material was "eyes only" and NOT to leave the department!!...silly me Just out of interest mate how long does the signatory on the OSA last, is it for "life"? Good for you mate, i wonder if he had a nice fat pension?
As to the OSA, I don't really know, but I'm not going to test the limits either, I could just imagine returning to the UK for a funeral and getting picked up at Manchester Airport for having fallen fowl of the OSA and they hold me in detention for 42days. As to the Ex senior officer, he does get a fat index linked pension, tw@t. I see him regularly around the village. I always thought that UK TS doc's were never to leave the building, and all those who were involved signed a chit that was part of the document as to why they needed access to the info date/time/grouping. MAYBE UK TOP SECRET means nothing these days, due to the UN having access to all and everything, plus the out sourcing of jobs to civilian contractors. Call me old fashioned, loose lips sink ships. I just hope that the 5 (2 Para) or so fatalities in last week in Afghanistan have nothing to do with any info that may or may not have been leaked due to this affair. Tony
Nuff said mate! "You got it in one" son! Yea, you and me both mate! I had the impression that when marked TS eyes only they had an office messenger (for want of a better word) who had to get the docs signed in at the meet, wait, watch them read it and then get it signed out??? Perhaps now on the apps form there is a footnote that says something along the lines of : "when taking home TS eyes only docs please ensure you eat your sandwich first and leave enough time for catching connecting trains"
Think they contained anything earth shattering(Like "Al-queda"is a guy who owns a carpet cleaning business in New Jersey?) Got a pool on the life expectancy of the finder going yet? (lol)? we have massive amounts of personal data go lost occasionally, but "We" sell our really good secret and ts stuff to the chinese. Ask Billy bob Clinton...lol! TS is held pretty tightly and certainly never, left the office here., Even"plain old secret" (We always stored our documents overnight in the custody of the base comm center overnight when traveling).
Re: Secret Intel Data..DONT GIVE IT TO THE UK round2 Oh this just aint getting better? and im NOT making this up, i seriously thought about putting this one in the humour section? From the mail on sunday: Ministers were accused of presiding over a 'culture of carelessness' yesterday after a second set of secret Whitehall papers was left on a train. The documents, which set out the Government's strategy on tackling terrorist funding, drugs trafficking and money laundering, were found on a commuter train heading for London's Waterloo Station last week. They were lost on Wednesday - the same day that a separate file of highly classified intelligence documents concerning Al Qaeda and Iraq were left on a separate train leaving London, prompting a major police investigation and the suspension of the senior intelligence official responsible. Senior MPs added to the Government's embarrassment, claiming Britain's enemies no longer needed to hack into Whitehall computers, but simply travel on public transport.My thoughts exactly! The latest batch of sensitive files include discussions of weaknesses in the way HM Revenue & Customs' computer systems track serious financial fraud, and details of how the international trade and banking systems could be manipulated to finance illicit weapons of mass destruction in Iran. There were also secret briefing notes ahead of sensitive discussions this week when the international Financial Action Task Force - which coordinates global efforts to tackle money-laundering and terrorist financing - meets in London. Chairman of the Home Affairs Select Committee, Keith Vaz, demanded that Home Secretary Jacqui Smith come before the committee this week to explain how the security lapses had occurred, and what steps were now being taken. He said: 'We need an explanation from the Home Secretary whether all these breaches of security affect our fight against terrorism. What he actually needs an explanation?'Until the inquiry has been concluded and we are told how these extraordinary events occurred, no official no matter how senior, should be allowed to take classified or confidential documents outside their offices for whatever reason. DER DER WHAT! ya think? Why dont they just leave the doors open for anyone to walk in have a look round, take what they need? This is proper
This country's going down the pan (Uk) Identity cards, a database to log internet use, CC cameras, and they have the nerve to call US paraniod. And to top it all off we are now mean't to trust them with all the information we are voluntarily (or not) giving them. They can take an F****** hike. Another good reason to stay under the radar. Good post
Will the idiot's be charged with carelessness with TS documents while traveling on public transport, or will it be treason as it should be or would have been not to many moons ago? Tony
You got it in one mate! Well and truly Under-the-radar............."flying low" Toemag: They should have never bricked the "gate-up"....if only either of them were still in use today eh? Insted of being of "good use" its now just a tourist attraction of "ye 'ol London"
