Data loss contractor axed from IT deal

The IT consultancy which lost an unencrypted memory stick containing the personal details of 84,000 prisoners had its contract terminated by the government yesterday.



PA Consulting will lose the £1.5m, three-year deal it had with the Home Office after a probe found an employee left the device in an unlocked drawer in an unlocked office.



Also by order of the Home Secretary, all of the firm's IT contracts with the department – worth £8million – will be reviewed, as will those with other contractors.



Tasked to the Cabinet Office, the Whitehall-wide review will scrutinise all contracts held with privately owned suppliers to check they are "appropriate," Ms Smith said.



The minister maintained the government's stance on the incident from the outset, alleging that PA Consulting failed to follow the security provisions in its contract.



Breaking its silence on the incident, the IT consultancy said it has a system of "security procedures and practices in place" in order to protect its clients' sensitive information.



But admitting to "human failure", the firm said an employee breached these security processes, during their use of the memory stick to do their work at its London offices.



When the stick was not in use, the employee left it in a drawer, which may not have been locked inside an office in an insecure area, according to a leaked briefing note.



Obtained by the Times, the note from the Association of Chief Police Officers reportedly adds that police do not believe the stick was taken as a "targeted theft."



Separately, ACPO President Ken Jones said the association wholeheartedly supports Ms Smith's actions, which they said would reassure the public on the handling of their data.



In a statement, PA Consulting said it deeply regretted the "human failure" of a "single employee", but then said it "unreservedly" apologises to the Home Office.



It added: "It is clear from the events of recent weeks that the challenge of managing necessary confidential information held by government, and in particular of eliminating human error, is industry-wide."



As well as containing the names, dates of birth and some release dates of 84,000 prisoners, the unprotected dataset included 33,000 records from the police national computer.