Department for Work and Pensions: Theft
(asked on 9th November 2023) - View Source
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what data their Department holds on the (a) number and (b) total cost of replacing (i) laptops, (ii) mobile phones, (iii) memory sticks and (iv) external hard drives that have been (A) lost and (B) stolen in the last year.
The following table includes the number of lost or stolen devices in DWP in the last year. Departmental recording systems do not differentiate between lost and stolen, therefore these numbers have been amalgamated.
Type | a) Number lost/stolen | b) Cost |
i) Laptops | 94 items | £78,014.13 |
ii) Mobile phones | 24 items | £10,800.00 |
iii) Memory sticks | 6 items | £00.00 |
iv) External hard drives | Zero items | £00.00 |
All departmental IT is fully security encrypted. Memory sticks are also fully encrypted, and no data is accessible on a lost stick.
The departmental security unit records and investigates each reported loss from the Department. If appropriate, the police are invited to undertake further inquiries. Any mobile device reported as lost is immediately and remotely deactivated and the contents deleted. The user account on any laptop reported as lost is immediately and remotely locked. There has been no data loss or compromise because of these losses.