Southend-on-Sea borough council in the UK is reviewing its procedures after a laptop computer containing social services case notes on local children turned up on eBay.

The council disposes of its used computers through not-for-profit organisation Revitalise, which employs disabled people who work with IT technicians to recondition used computer equipment for cheap resale to schools and voluntary groups.

A council spokesperson said the laptop had “gone missing” from Revitalise, but the council had not been aware of the loss until the individual who bought the machine on eBay found the social services information and reported the matter to the council. The data found on the machine is understood to include fostering, adoption and child protection information dating from between 1999 and 2003.

The laptop is now in the possession of Essex and Surrey Police.

Posted: 05|10|07 at 1:37 pm. Filed under: UK News.