15m bank details lost!!

[emamum]

Confidential details of 15 million child benefit recipients are on computer discs lost by HM Revenue and Customs, the BBC understands.

BBC NEWS | Politics | Discs with 15m bank details lost

this is ridiculous and very worrying!!

[entwisi]

as the article says, there is nothing there by which someone can access our account directly. It would still take social engineering or some other method to scam you.

[BERNADETTE]

Is there only me thinking this is a bit odd? What sprang to my mind was how many people are really claiming for kids not living in the country. Not that what they are doing is illegal just that it could be a way of covering the true figures up!!

[emamum]

alistar darling has said, in the house of commons that any one who has fraudulant activity in their account due to this will be refunded......
the disc contained names+childrens names, ages, addresses, national insurance numbers... these should have been lookes after.. they could be used for many things if they fall into the wrong hands

these were sent through royal mail 1st class post and not the registered post...

[claytonender]

It really is frightening, there is so much personal detail there, that could be used for identity fraud. I would have thought that information of a very sensitive nature would have been sent by courier (or Royal Mail Special Delivery).

[WillowTheWhisp]

Originally Posted by entwisi

as the article says, there is nothing there by which someone can access our account directly. It would still take social engineering or some other method to scam you.

It's not having my bank details that worries me, that's available on every cheque I write (Don't say, 'What's a cheque?')- it's having names and ages of my children and NI number that worries me. With all the fuss they make about shredding to avoid identity theft and then all this is handed out on a plate (or a CD as the case may be)

[emamum]

this is child benefit so every child in the country's details are on this list!!

[West Ender]

It's a bad situation but I'm not in the least bit surprised. Having, up to last month, worked for the organisation for so long I have been appalled, in the last few years, at the way it has gone downhill, mainly due to the tremendous staff cutting that has gone on. The Government decided that HMRC could function just as well with 1/2 the workforce and it's as crazy as expecting a football team to win every match with only 5 players.

I keep thinking of the words chickens, home, come, to and roost - not necessarily in that order.

[MargaretR]

Originally Posted by West Ender

It's a bad situation but I'm not in the least bit surprised. Having, up to last month, worked for the organisation for so long I have been appalled, in the last few years, at the way it has gone downhill, mainly due to the tremendous staff cutting that has gone on. The Government decided that HMRC could function just as well with 1/2 the workforce and it's as crazy as expecting a football team to win every match with only 5 players.

I keep thinking of the words chickens, home, come, to and roost - not necessarily in that order.

I agree entirely West Ender.

Ever since new technology was introduced in the civil service depts, governments have overestimated staff savings that technology would enable.
The quality of recruits in the lowest ranks (one of whom has done this) was bound to reduce when they are nothing more than button pushers paid low wages, and their managers are busy implementing changes which are politically motivated and not operationally thought through.

You can't expect a blue ribbon service from a brown string operation.

[BERNADETTE]

It has just been on the news that the figure is twenty five million. Ten million adult and fifteen million childrens details have been lost.

[Eric]

This sort of thing is happening so often. Perhaps with all this info out there in all kinds of places it has to happen occasionally. Maybe it is a feature of the computer age that stuff will be hacked and go missing. Not too long ago in the US and Canada, Winners ... a clothing franchise ... "lost" the credit card and debit card info on millions of customers. Even the RCMP dumped sensitive files in the garbage and left them out on the street. The Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce "mislaid" the personal and financial info on thousands of their customers. Corrections Canada sold a bunch of their old computers without wiping the information from them. It goes on and on ... and will probably happen a lot more.

[Margaret Pilkington]

This is the same government that wants us all on their database......I wouldn't trust ' em to run a jumble sale.

[Eric]

Originally Posted by Margaret Pilkington

This is the same government that wants us all on their database......I wouldn't trust ' em to run a jumble sale.

I agree ... most govts., ours included, would be hard put to orgainise an orgy in a whorehouse.

[cashman]

a complete mess, apparently in the wrong hands people are able to get credit in your name,etc, but can't acess yer bank account, oh well that makes it all right, i think not.

[emamum]

they'll have a job getting credit in my name.... i blinking well can't!!!!!