Royal Mail urges people to change house numbers after data breach
The UKâs Information Commissioner is today investigating a massive data theft of names and addresses from a Royal Mail facility in Slough. The data breach is said to be restricted to âonlyâ 2-3 million UK residents, although the full extent of the breach is not yet known. âI can confirm that last night a directory was removed from our secure data facility in Slough,â said Royal Mailâs Head of Letters and Numbers. âThe paper directory, sometimes known as a âphone bookâ contained millions of names and addresses in unencrypted format.â âWe apologise unreservedly for this breach, and weâre recommending people immediately change their house numbers to something more complicated, using a mixture of upper and lower-case numbers, then re-paint them on the front of their houses.â âThe problem is that most people still use the house numbers they were given when they first moved in,â says Post Operative SimonÂ Williams. âSome of the really obvious numbers, like â1â are just asking to be hacked if you ask me.â âItâs just laziness,â he continues. âPeople think just because theyâve never had their house number stolen it canât happen to them.â âPersonally I change my house number every six months.â Number %0! Downing Street refused to comment, saying it was a matter for the relevant authorities.