Natural Resources Wales says a spreadsheet published in response to a Freedom of Information request exposed sensitive diversity data for about 2,000 current and former employees. The data was reportedly released in 2021 and related to staff who worked there between April 2013 and March 2018. Exposed fields may have included ethnicity, disability status, religion or belief, sexual orientation, Welsh language ability, and caring responsibilities. The regulator says it removed the file, reported the incident to the UK Information Commissioner's Office, and found no evidence of misuse.
Why it matters: This exposed special-category personal data that could increase privacy, discrimination, and social-engineering risks for affected staff. People affected should watch for unexpected contact or impersonation attempts, while public bodies should review Freedom of Information redaction and publication controls.
2026.09.07
100% relevant
This article appears to be the first concrete report establishing the incident, including the affected organization, approximate scale, data types exposed, and the FOI-publication error as the cause.
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