The Ministry of Defence has had 66 laptops stolen since the beginning of the year, the department has revealed.
Responding to a parliamentary question tabled by shadow defence secretary Liam Fox, the MoD admitted 66 laptops, 14 desktop computers and 5 USB flash drives had been stolen between January 1 and November 2 2009.
The department has also lost 25 laptops, 9 desktop computers, and 42 USB drives, defence minister Kevan Jones told Fox.
A total of 161 data storage items have been either lost or stolen, the figures reveal.
19 laptops were stolen in August alone, while 15 USB drives were taken in April.
In his answer, Jones said the MoD took any loss of information and media storage devices "very seriously" and said the department had "robust procedures" in place to mitigate against such losses.
"New processes, instructions and technological aids are also being implemented to mitigate human errors and raise awareness of every individual in the department," he added.
