Deloitte loses BSkyB employees details

Data on a stolen laptop

13 October 2008 14:15 GMT / By Katie Scott

Data scandal number two - and that's just today.

Accountancy firm Deloitte has admitted that a laptop containing pension details for BSkyB staff, among others, has been nicked.

The laptop was taken from a handbag that was stolen in a public place.

But Sky is trying to allay fears and says that the theft was thought to have been opportunistic and nothing more sinister, and also that the data is protected.

Sky issued a statement saying: "We believe this was an opportunistic theft and the laptop is protected by a number of security measures. These factors combined means that the risk of the data being accessed or misused is extremely low".

Deloitte added that these measures included a start up password, operating system user ID/password authentication, and encryption.

The accountancy firm also said that bank account details and addresses were not on the laptop, but the names of employees and their salaries were.

The accountancy added in its statement: "The theft was immediately reported to the police and relevant clients were notified".

"Deloitte has information security policies that include guidelines for employees to ensure they pay close attention to their laptops when in public places. Very unfortunately, this theft still occurred."

Full tags

Hardware, Laptops, Sky