![Pinterest](https://pinterest.com/pin/create/button/?url=https://uknews.evprotec.com/how-safe-is-my-data-after-a-hack-or-leak/&media=https://uknews.evprotec.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/130698621_mediaitem130698619.jpg&description=Image source, Getty Images Following news stories in the past few days, it's understandable you might be concerned about your data. The UK's elections watchdog revealed on Tuesday it had been the victim of a "complex cyber-attack" potentially affecting millions of voters. It also emerged personal details of police officers in Northern Ireland were published accidentally. Generally, when public organisations such as the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) respond to Freedom of Information requests they should remove any identifying data. But in this case the force published confidential details by accident, leaving some officers and their families with concerns about their safety . However, an average person affected by a data leak or hack should not panic. Regarding the cyber-attack affecting UK voters, the Electoral Commission has apologised to those affected but says on its website the data it holds is "limited, and much of it is already in the public domain". "According to the risk assessment used by the Information Commissioner's Office [the data regulator] to assess the harm of data breaches, the personal data held on electoral registers, typically name and address, does not in itself present a high risk to individuals," it says. This information could be combined with other bits of data about you, such as what you share on social media, to identify you - but this takes a lot of time and cyber criminals will generally only target prominent individuals like this. And unless you have opted out of being named on the open electoral register, much of this information will already be publicly available online. If you are concerned about a different data breach, and are worried your information may have been lost, there are also websites which will tell you if your email was part of a known data breach. The Electoral Commission specifically recommends people use the free online service Have I Been Pwned (sic) to check this. If you believe your password to an acc){kind=link}
Following news stories in the past few days, it’s understandable you might be concerned about your data.
The UK’s elections watchdog revealed on Tuesday it had been the victim of a “complex cyber-attack” potentially affecting millions of voters.
It also emerged personal details of police officers in Northern Ireland were published accidentally.
But what can you do if you are concerned your data may have been leaked, and how can you prevent issues?
Generally, when public organisations such as the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) respond to Freedom of Information requests they should remove any identifying data.