BBC laptop and mobile losses total £240,000

The BBC has lost or had stolen 146 laptops, 65 mobile phones and 17 BlackBerrys

The BBC has lost laptops and mobile phones with a value of more than £240,000 in the past two years, according to a Freedom of Information request by security vendor Absolute Software.

Staff at the corporation lost or had stolen 146 laptops at a cost of £219,000, as well as 65 mobile phones and 17 BlackBerrys at a cost of £22,000.

Just 15 laptops, three mobiles and one BlackBerry were recovered, although the BBC said that once a theft, suspected theft or loss is reported "data security breach procedures" are implemented.

Absolute Software general manager Dave Everitt argued that the BBC should be using preinstalled technology where possible to track stolen laptops and smartphones with a view to recovering or disabling the devices.

"It is shocking that any organisation could lose so much equipment, but the BBC is just one of many we've seen recently, proving that it's all too common," he said.

"In this case, however, the technology is paid for by the licence payer, and employees should be far more careful about how they handle it."

The BBC replied that it takes theft very seriously, but that in any large organisation there is a risk of portable equipment going missing.

BBC laptops and smartphones are protected, and most small mobile devices have a remote wipe facility, according to the BBC.

However, firms must go beyond protecting 'data at rest', according to Paul Vlissidis, technical director at IT assurance firm NCC Group.

"Many laptops are left in standby mode, which effectively renders the hard disk encryption useless if the machine can be attacked whilst powered up," he argued.

"Also, many security issues are related to the way that laptops use untrusted networks such as WiFi hotspots. Many firms don’t have adequate security measure s to protect the laptop when they connect to these networks.”

However the ICO appears unlikely to investigate this incident.

"The BBC has reported data breaches to the ICO in the past," it said in a statement.

"Should we receive evidence to suggest there have been further significant losses of unencrypted personal information that have not been reported to us, we will not hesitate to take this up with the BBC to establish the facts and identify what action, if any, is necessary.”