reporting that an MI6 agent forgot to erase top secret images and documents from a Nikon CoolPix digital camera before selling it on eBay. The agent, soon to be sacked according to the article, got about $35 for the camera which contained images of terrorist weapons, secret files, and computer systems. Following on the other recent SNAFUs of the British intelligence agencies this is an embarrassment for the government. I think it highlights just how difficult it is to protect data from accidental loss let alone deliberate theft.
The Sun is
The 28 year old deliveryman who purchased the camera took it to the police in Hemel Hempstead, Herts (say that fast three times). Initially they thought he was joking:
Yet within days Special Branch, the team of specialist anti-terror officers based in every county force, descended on his humble terraced home.
They took away the camera and the family’s PC and spent £1,000 replacing them.
Officers banned the shocked family from talking to the media.
One more quote from the article:
Terrorism author Neil Doyle said: “These are MI6 documents relating to an operation against al-Qaeda insurgents in Iraq. It’s jaw-dropping they got into the public domain.
If MI6 cannot protect their data from this type of “leak” how can any organization do so?
