Hundreds more MoD data breaches revealed as security questions raised in wake of Afghan breach
In one incident last year, the details of 272,000 staff – including names and bank details – were breached when one of its systems, run by an external contractor, was hacked by a 'malign actor'.
In another case, the MoD was fined £350,000 (€404,000) by the Information Commissioner for a breach related to the handling of emails linked to the Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy (ARAP) – the scheme to bring Afghans with links to British forces to safety in UK.
Kevan Jones, the chairman of the powerful Intelligence and Security Committee (ISC), has demanded that the MoD give an explanation as to why high-security information is being held on low-security systems.
It follows the revelation this week of a catastrophic data breach, which exposed 100,000 Afghans to potential reprisals from the Taliban, costing the UK taxpayer billions and prompting a three-year cover-up through the use of an unprecedented super-injunction.
Further concerns emerged on Thursday after it was revealed that UK spies and special forces soldiers were also potentially exposed by the incident.
Already, members of the ISC, which has a statutory duty to hold government agencies to account, are furious that the MoD ignored a request by a judge to share the details of the original Afghan data breach with the committee.
But now the Labour peer who chairs the committee has raised questions over whether the MoD's systems to handle sensitive data are good enough.
Mr Jones said: 'There seems to have been a number of breaches. It raises questions not just about the systems but how they are used.
"The big unanswered question on the Afghanistan data leak is why such secret information was being held on a low-side system and not a secure encrypted system.'
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The ISC has demanded documents relating to the Afghan breach and could launch its own inquiry into the scandal.
But the issue is also set to be raised in the inquiry that the Commons defence select committee will hold after the summer recess.
Tan Dhesi, the Labour defence select committee chair, said: 'This is going to end up being one of the most costly email blunders in history. .
'Rigorous safeguards must be in place to ensure that this cannot happen again.
" It's shameful that courageous Afghans who served alongside British soldiers have had their safety jeopardised by this leak.
'The revelation that this breach has also put our brave British service personnel at risk makes the situation even more shocking.
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