Up to £140m could be spent covering compensation and legal costs associated with the PSNI data leak, the service has been told.
Approximately 7,000 officers and staff are involved in legal action claiming negligence and breach of data protection and privacy.
The PSNI has set aside £116m to cover estimated costs based on legal advice suggesting the bill could be anywhere between £90m and £140m, or an average of between £12,500 and £20,000 per officer and staff member.
Approximately £7.5m has already been spent by the force on the fallout from last August’s leak of the names of the then more than 9,000 officers and staff, which was posted on the What Do They Know site for more than two hours.
The amount already spent, the majority made up of a one off £500 payment to enhance home security, is ten times the £750,000 fine handed down by information Commissioner John Edwards.
Mr Edwards, who briefed the Policing Board on his investigation on Thursday, said it was the worst data breach his office had come across, particularly given its security implications.
Chief Constable Jon Boutcher, who also attended the board meeting, described the fine as “regrettable” given the PSNI’s straightened financial position.
However, the fine is dwarfed by how much the breach will cost the PSNI in compensation and legal costs.
Nicolas Hanna KC, counsel for the PSNI, recently told the High Court: “Liability is no longer an issue, it’s (now) a matter of causation and damages.”
In his annual report filed with the Assembly on July 4, the day of the general election, Mr Boutcher detailed how the force has set aside £116m, the estimated total cost, but warned it could be greater.
“This estimate is based on the latest legal advice which indicates that, based on the current number of cases, costs are likely to lie in the range of approximately £90 million to £140 million,” the chief constable wrote.
The estimate was based on the approximately 7,000, the probable damages and costs.
“However, there is considerable uncertainty around the proportion of current claimants within each of a range of psychiatric injury bandings outlined in the legal advice and their potential awards,” he added.
Further claims and other issues, including the PSNI’s unknown amount in legal costs, means “There is potential for further liability in addition to the amount already provided for”.
