[Dataloss] Hong Kong officials lose personal data on 700 troubled children

[rchick]

Apr 25, 2008, 10:25 GMT
http://news.monstersandcritics.com/health/news/article_1401863.php/Hong_Kong_officials_lose_personal_data_on_700_troubled_children

 Hong Kong - Medical data on almost 700 Hong Kong children and
teenagers with social and developmental problems have been lost, the
territory's government admitted Friday.

 The records were held on a memory card which was stolen from an
unlocked room at a Child Assessment Centre in the city's Tuen Mun
district, the government's Department of Health said.

 The lost data included detailed records of interviews with troubled
youngsters including assessments and, in some cases, their photos,
identity card numbers and addresses.

 Hong Kong's Deputy Director of Health Gloria Tam apologized to the
families affected and said they should contact police if anyone
suspicious approached them with their personal details.

 As the case involved personal privacy, the affected families should
remain alert and report to the police if they were approached by
suspicious people with their personal data, she said.

 'We have reminded our staff about the absolute importance of office
security and to strictly adhere to the government's security
regulations,' she said in a statement.

 A government hotline has been set up to deal with calls from
youngsters and family members concerned over the loss of the data, she
added.