The response related to the number and nature of new complaints made against the FCA between 2 January 2018 and 17 July 2019. More than half of the 1,600 complainants had only their names revealed. The FCA said it would write to those who had their addresses and phone numbers revealed to inform them of the breach.
The personal data, which was published in November, were revealed within descriptions of complaints. No financial, payment card, passport or other identity information was included.
The FCA said in a statement “The publication of this information was a mistake by the FCA. As soon as we became aware of this, we removed the relevant data from our website. We have undertaken a full review to identify the extent of any information that may have been accessible. Our primary concern is to ensure the protection and safeguarding of individuals who may be identifiable from the data.”