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Stolen hard drive leaves UK officers open to blackmail

Sensitive files detailing the extra-marital affairs, drug taking and use of prostitutes by very senior officers in the Royal Air Force (RAF) have been stolen, raising fears within the UK’s Ministry of Defence (MOD) that personnel could be vulnerable to blackmail.

Up to 500 people in the service could be affected by the theft. They have been interviewed individually about the possible consequences to them and to their families.

The potentially damaging information was stored on three computer hard drives that went missing from RAF Innsworth, Gloucestershire, last September. The files were not encrypted, so could be opened easily.

The RAF disclosed the loss of the hard drives two weeks after they went missing, revealing only that the bank details and home addresses of 50,000 servicemen and women were on the computers.

It kept secret the fact that the “vetting” information about 500 staff had also disappeared. The UK’s defense secretary at the time, Des Browne, was not told, nor was Sir Richard Thomas, then information commissioner. The details were also withheld from parliament.

But the seriousness of the potential loss, and the nature of the information, were outlined in an internal MOD memo, which was obtained under Freedom of Information legislation.

It said: “This information included details of criminal convictions, investigations, precise details of debt, medical conditions, drug abuse, use of prostitutes, extra-marital affairs including the names of third parties.”

“The data is not routine vetting information, but relates to those cases that have been referred to RAF ... because the individuals have serious vulnerabilities that affect their suitability to obtain/retain a security clearance. This data provides an excellent target list for foreign intelligence services, investigative journalists and blackmailers. Moreover, if the information relating to the private lives of RAF personnel, especially of some very senior officers, enters the public domain, the reputation of the service will be tarnished,” it said.

“The vetting information would be likely to generate further interest and, due to the profile of some individuals, would likely grab front page status,” it said.

Details of the ministry’s internal memo will be revealed in the BBC TV program Who’s Watching You, which was to be broadcast at 9pm last night.

The program was to include an interview with an unnamed former serviceman who put the Freedom of Information and Data Protection Acts request to the ministry.

The requests revealed internal concern about the loss from an RAF wing commander. The source, now retired, handled top secret and highly sensitive information, including data on aircraft and ship maneuvers in Iraq.

At the time of the theft, on Sept. 11 last year, the MOD took more than two weeks to publicly disclose the loss of the 50,000 files.

The drives were kept in a secure area of the base at Innsworth, which was regularly patrolled, and they were not encrypted. They were due to be transferred to the RAF’s air command headquarters at High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire.
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