The Metropolitan police is on high alert after a security breach involving the IT system of one of its suppliers, the force said.
Scotland Yard is working with the company to understand the scale of the incident.
The Sun reported that all 47,000 personnel had been warned of the risk that their photos, names and ranks had been leaked after a contractor responsible for printing warrant cards and staff passes was hacked. The company in question did not hold personal information such as addresses, phone numbers or financial details, the force said.
The matter has been reported to the National Crime Agency and the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), the Met said, amid fears terrorists or organised gangs could use any stolen data.
A spokesperson for the force was unable to say when the breach occurred.
It follows an admission by the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) that personal data on all its serving members was mistakenly published in response to a freedom of information (FoI) request.
Details of about 10,000 PSNI officers and staff included the surname and first initial of every employee, their rank or grade, where they are based and the unit they work in.
After the PSNI breach was revealed, Norfolk and Suffolk constabulary announced the personal data of more than 1,000 people – including crime victims – was included in another FoI response.
On Wednesday, South Yorkshire police referred itself to the ICO after noticing “a significant and unexplained reduction in data stored on its systems”.
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The force said it was now urgently working with experts to recover footage filmed by officers as they attended incidents or engaged with the public and that, in some cases, could be used as evidence in court.
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