Humberside Police third worst in country for data protection breaches

Humberside Police force is the third worst in the country for data protection breaches by officers and staff - according to a report out today.

Civil liberties group Big Brother Watch say there were 168 breaches of data over the last five years - the worst offender was West Midlands with 488.

Some of Humberside's breaches included accessing police systems for non-police matters and disclosure of official operation details to a third party. Several employees - both police and civilian - have resigned from their posts.

In response to the report, Head of Humberside Police Professional Standards Branch Chief Superintendent Judi Heaton, said:

“There is clear guidance both through training and explicit messaging to staff on their use of police systems to access data, outlining the circumstances under which they are permitted to interrogate those systems."