Another NHS body which did not take full care of its information has been rapped for its lack of data loss protection after the recent loss of details belonging to 6,377 people.

NHS Education for Scotland (NES) accepted its role in a new drama involving an unencrypted laptop, which was stolen from its facilities.

Information lost through the theft included names, addresses, applicant summaries, equality and diversity monitoring information and phone numbers.

Ken Macdonald, the assistant information commissioner for Scotland, said the information was not correctly secured as per protocol and highlighted the importance of encryption.

He continued: "I urge all organisations to restrict and encrypt the amount of personal information stored on portable devices that can be taken off site. If personal details fall into the wrong hands, individuals can experience considerable distress."

The Liberal Democrats pointed out the "catalogue" of NHS data losses last year, with party health spokesman Norman Lamb saying in November: "Patients have a right to expect their personal information will be treated with the utmost care.

"The degree of negligence in some cases is breathtaking given the absolute sensitivity of personal patient data."

According to a recent survey by Connect, the two biggest IT headaches for businesses were 'everyday hassles with IT' (37 per cent) and 'security concerns' (32 per cent).