PSNI: a request for staff totals exposed individual identities

What was reported

The ICO documented a spreadsheet published in response to requests for staff numbers by rank and grade. An unnoticed worksheet retained personal details of all 9,483 PSNI officers and staff, including surnames, initials, ranks, and roles. The regulator found inadequate disclosure procedures and fined PSNI £750,000. The disclosure was accidental, rather than an intrusion into police systems.

Read the report from Information Commissioner’s Office

Our perspective

Our reading: For an equivalent AI-assisted reporting task, supplying approved aggregate counts instead of a source workbook would reduce unnecessary exposure. This closely matches Vivendur’s focus on choosing the information a task requires before a tool receives it.

Limits of this connection

That is a design lesson, not proof of prevention. Generated outputs and attachments still need disclosure checks, and released copies cannot be recalled through permission revocation.