Pregnant officer feared drive-by shooting after data breach

The PSNI accidentally released details of its 9,400-strong workforce in response to a Freedom of Information request.

An officer feared a drive-by shooting would be carried out on her home by dissident republicans after a major data breach within the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI), Belfast High Court has heard.

The court has begun hearing claims for damages by six people impacted by the major data breach in 2023.

The officer said she suffered a panic attack after being told about the leak and was heavily pregnant at the time, and was scared of the perceived threat to the safety of her family in the future.

"It just felt like my whole world was crashing down," she said.

The data breach occurred when the PSNI accidentally released details of its 9,400-strong workforce in response to a Freedom of Information request.

Six people have been selected as test cases from action being taken by thousands of officers and staff who are pursuing compensation.

Six people have been selected as test cases from action being taken by thousands of officers and staff who are pursuing compensation.

It is hoped the outcome will act as a "guide" for all settlements.

The PSNI has accepted liability for the breach, but cannot currently fund the compensation bill.

The government has turned down a request for £119m made on its behalf by the Department of Finance at Stormont to address the issue.

The details were published on a website and later obtained by dissident republicans.

'I had a panic attack'

The officer, who was granted anonymity is referred to as RB89.

The officer, who is not originally from Northern Ireland, told the court she had taken security precautions since joining the PSNI in 2017.

She told the court how she was six months pregnant when a colleague informed her about the data breach.

"I had a panic attack, I wasn't able to get a breath and I was scared," she said.

She said her name was uncommon which made her fear she could be easily identified from the data breach, so she decided to go on leave from work.

"I just felt physically sick and worried about my unborn baby," she stated.

"I kept thinking if I couldn't get a breath, is the baby OK? If my heartbeat is high, is the baby OK?"

Extra security measures were put in place around her family's home following the data breach, including cameras, fencing and installing of a video doorbell.

The court heard RB89 refused to sit in the living room or let her children go in there for a long time afterwards because it backed onto a nearby road.

"I was worried that someone was going to drive by and shoot," she said.

"The doors were always locked, and when the security lights went on I would jump up in bed five times a night.

"It could be just a cat, but there was a constant worry."

'No attack on police officers'

RB89's barrister David Dunlop KC, said the officer described the time as living daily in a "fight or flight" situation.

She told the court the main impact on her health and wellness has been caused by the data breach.

"It will always have an effect on me. That information is out there, I'm not changing my name and I'm still a police officer," she told the court.

"(The concern) is my children not having a mum, thinking that someone was going to shoot through our house.

"I had these unwanted images all the time that dissident republicans were holding this list, (I have) an unusual name and I look like an easy target."

Nicolas Hanna KC, for the PSNI, suggested her concerns should have eased because the data breach has not resulted in any attacks on police officers.

But RB89 replied: "Dissident republicans have that information and they could in the process of collating it for an attack, because it hasn't happened doesn't mean it's not going to."

The proceedings were adjourned and Mr Justice Rooney will hear evidence from other test cases in December.