It takes a lot to produce gasps of astonishment from British politicians. But that was what greeted Alistair Darling, the chancellor of the exchequer, when he told parliament on November 20th that two computer discs containing the personal details of 25m British individuals and 7m families had gone missing. The discs were being sent by internal mail between two government departments; they included names, addresses, bank-account details, dates of birth and names of spouses and children. The fate of the discs is unknown, but they contain just the sort of information sought after by identity thieves, who could use it to procure fake documents, commit fraud and empty bank accounts.

At The Economist.

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