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Tuesday 11th December 2007

More government discs go missing 4:35PM, Tuesday 11th December 2007

The Driver and Vehicle Agency (DVA) in Northern Ireland has lost the records of 6,000 motorists, after sending two CDs of information in the post to its headquarters in Swansea.

The DVA said the data was being provided to vehicle manufacturers to assist them in contacting drivers with regards to a potential recall.

Information on the discs included the licence plates of 7,685 vehicles, owner name, address, chassis number, make and colour. The DVA admitted that none of this information was encrypted, however, it says no personal financial data was involved.

The loss was revealed in a leaked letter sent



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by the DVA to Patsy McGlone, head of the Stormont Environment Committee, which stated, "There is no record of the packages leaving this depot in Coventry. In spite of extensive searches at the depot, they have not yet been found."

In a statement, Northern Ireland's Department for the Environment, which runs the DVA, confirmed the data had been lost and that measures had been taken to alert those affected.

"Letters have been sent to all registered keepers of vehicles involved. Replacement data to assist with the safety recall has now been provided and receipt confirmed. The Data Commissioner has been informed and a special telephone helpline established."

A spokesperson for the DVA confirmed that the discs disappeared between the 21 and 22 of November, around the same time the government was misplacing CDs containing the personal details of 25 million child benefit claimants.

Stuart Turton

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