IT is with astonishment and dismay that I learn that the bank details of thousands of individuals were stored unencrypted on a laptop stolen from Glasgow City Council offices at the end of May ("Details of 'vulnerable' residents on stolen computer", The Herald, June 12).
Given the high-profile afforded security of personal data in recent years, including reviews following the loss of CDs containing child benefit payment data which led to the publication of the Scottish Government's guidelines on identity management and privacy principles, it is inexcusable for the council to show such reckless disregard for residents' personal data. Such data should never have been stored on an unencrypted laptop.
Dr Geraint Bevan,
NO2ID Scotland, 3e Grovepark Gardens, Glasgow.
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