Highly sensitive data belonging to police forces across the United Kingdom could be vulnerable to compromise by foreign actors, including the United States government, according to an official security assessment.
The data, stored partly on Microsoft Azure cloud platforms, reportedly includes criminal records, victims’ statements, internal emails, intelligence, body worn video, digital evidence and case files from more than 40 police forces.
The assessment warned that police forces could not be certain where their data was processed or stored because of the global nature of Microsoft’s cloud infrastructure.
It also identified a risk involving potential access by US government insiders and warned that sensitive information could be released by hostile actors.
Microsoft rejected suggestions that its cloud services automatically expose customer data to foreign governments. The company said it had never provided UK government data in response to a US or other government request.
The National Police Chiefs’ Council said access to police data was restricted and subject to strict controls, while acknowledging that Microsoft staff could sometimes access data to provide technical support.
The development has raised concerns over the security and sovereignty of sensitive UK law enforcement information stored on infrastructure operated by US technology companies.
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