Northern Ireland’s Chief Constable, Simon Byrne, has issued an apology for a significant data breach that exposed the personal information of more than 10,000 police officers and staff. The breach, described as an “industrial scale” incident, has raised concerns due to the ongoing security situation in the region, which has a history of sectarian violence. Dissident republicans have reportedly claimed to possess information about police officers and have shared it on WhatsApp. The breach comes after a Freedom of Information request led to the accidental release of a table containing personal details of police employees. Another breach in July involved stolen documents, including a spreadsheet with names of serving officers.