The Police Service of Northern Ireland has apologised after information about all of the force's serving officers and staff was published in a data breach.
At a press conference in Belfast, PSNI Assistant Chief Constable Chris Todd said the surname, initial, the rank or grade, the location and the departments of all current officers had been accidentally published in response to a Freedom of Information (FOI) request.
Mr Todd said: "In terms of the security for individuals, there's nothing at the moment to suggest there's any immediate security concerns, but we have put actions in place to ensure that if anything does arise we will be aware of that, and then we can mitigate accordingly.
"This is human error. We've looked into the circumstances, we'll continue with our investigation, but the very early considerations are that this is simple human error and the people who have been involved in the process have acted in good faith."
The PSNI committed a 'significant data breach' by revealing the surname and initial, rank or grade and location of employment of all current employees when responding to a Freedom of Information request, a spokesperson for the force has said | Read more: https://t.co/ZginB3a9pC pic.twitter.com/lXeoPb2Ae9
— RTÉ News (@rtenews) August 8, 2023
Mr Todd explained: "What's happened is we've received a Freedom of Information request, that's quite a routine inquiry, nothing untoward in that.
"We've responded to that request, which was seeking to understand the total numbers of officers and staff at all ranks and grade across the organisation, and in the response, unfortunately, one of our colleagues has embedded the source data, which informed that request.
"So, what was within that data was the surname, initial, the rank or grade, the location and the departments for each of our current employees across the police service."
Mr Todd said the terrorist threat facing PSNI officers has made news of the extensive data breach "the last thing that anybody in the organisation wants to be hearing".
"I understand that that will be of considerable concern to many of my colleagues and their families indeed, at the moment," he said.
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The Northern Ireland Secretary has said he is "deeply concerned" about the data breach.
Writing on Twitter, Chris Heaton-Harris said: "I'm deeply concerned by the data breach involving the PSNI.
"My officials are in close contact with senior officers and are keeping me updated."
I'm deeply concerned by the data breach involving the PSNI.
— Chris Heaton-Harris MP (@chhcalling) August 8, 2023
My officials are in close contact with senior officers and are keeping me updated.
The Police Federation for Northern Ireland called for an "urgent inquiry" into the breach saying it was dismayed and angry about what happened.
Federation chair Liam Kelly said: "This is a breach of monumental proportions. Even if it was done accidentally, it still represents a data and security breach that should never have happened.
"Rigorous safeguards ought to have been in place to protect this valuable information which, if in the wrong hands, could do incalculable damage."
Ulster Unionist representative on the Policing Board of Northern Ireland Mike Nesbitt called for an emergency meeting of the Policing Board.
In a statement, he said: "It is imperative that officers, staff and their families and friends understand how seriously this breach is being taken and that the board is determined to fulfil its oversight and challenge functions appropriately."
Alliance Leader Naomi Long said that the sheer scale of the PSNI data breach reported is "profoundly concerning".
"This level of data breach is clearly of profound concern, not least to police officers, civilian staff, and their families, who will be feeling incredibly vulnerable and exposed tonight and in the days ahead," Ms Long said.
