UK Criminal Records Office fined for 2023 data breach

Published August 13, 2026

The UK Criminal Records Office (ACRO) was fined for failing to fix a security hole that let attackers steal personal data in 2023. The breach exposed sensitive criminal history records.

Report priority
Medium
Involves
UK Criminal Records Office

What is known

ACRO did not apply a known security patch and ignored warning signs for months, leaving a flaw open that attackers exploited.

What to do

Check if ACRO notified you directly about the breach. If not, contact the UK Information Commissioner's Office for details on next steps.

Reported details

The ICO has issued a formal reprimand to ACRO after patching and security monitoring failures led to a breach