- Loss of devices of the government departments of the United Kingdom Tops 2000 in just one year
- Experts fear that stolen devices can provide entry points to computer pirates
- Telephone and tablet thefts represent risks despite generalized encryption
Have you ever lost a phone or a computer and has worried what someone could find in it?
Thousands of devices have disappeared from the United Kingdom government departments in the last year, raising serious concerns about cybersecurity and data protection.
Analysis by The guardianBased on dissemination of freedom of information, he found that the Government lost more than 2,000 laptops, telephones and tablets in the last 12 months, with an estimated replacement cost of around £ 1.3 million.
Surprisingly large numbers
The Department of Labor and Pensions, the Ministry of Defense and the Office of the Cabinet reported each of hundreds of missing technological articles.
Only the Ministry of Defense registered 103 missing laptops and 387 phones in just five months of 2025. Other affected departments included HM Treasury, the Bank of England and the Ministry of Interior.
“We treat all safety infractions very seriously and require that all suspicious infractions be reported. All incidents are subject to an initial evaluation of safety risks, with additional measures proportionally,” said a Mod spokesman.
Encouraging the fears, the Department of Defense added, “the encryption on the devices ensures that any data is safeguarded and avoids access to the defense network.”
The Bank of England echoed this feeling, which said that “it takes the security of the devices and the data very seriously and has adequate protection.”
The same official line was jacket by a government spokesman who said: “We take the security of government devices extremely seriously, so articles such as laptops and mobile phones are always encrypted, so any loss does not compromise safety.”
Professor Alan Woodward, an expert in cybersecurity at the University of Surrey, was not so quiet, revealing The guardian“These are surprisingly large numbers. When you are talking about so many [it creates] A large attack surface [for hackers]. If 1% were system administrators who stole their phones, that's enough to enter. “
He added: “If the devices were open when they stole, as often happens with the phones taken on the street, the criminals could keep them open and deepen the device and once the phone is open, by design it is legible and accessible.”
