The Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) has announced that the Gwent Police violated the Data Protection Act when a staff member accidentally sent an e-mail to a Web journalist including the results of about 10,000 Criminal Records Bureau inquiries. Wales Assistant Commissioner Ann Jones said, "It is essential that staff are aware of and follow their organisation's security policies. Such a huge amount of sensitive personal information should never have been circulated via e-mail..." No identifiable information or details of convictions were included in the e-mail, the report states. The Gwent police chief has signed a formal undertaking to implement new security measures. The ICO says it is pleased with the steps the department is taking.
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