According to the Information Commissioner’s Office, the National Health Service is the biggest offender in the public sector when it comes to the number of reported data breaches in the last year.

The Information Commissioner’s Office’s annual report, which was issued this week, indicated that out of 603 data breaches reported in the last year, the National Health Service alone accounted for 165 of the breaches.

Public sector data breaches in total accounted for nearly two out of three data breaches reported by the Information Commissioner’s Office over the last year. Although the National Health Service was the biggest offender, it was followed closely by local government, which reported 146 breaches, and then the central government, which reported 32 breaches. The remaining 45 breaches were reported across a number of different public sector bodies.

However, it should not come as a surprise that the public sector reported more data breaches than the private sector. While it is required that the National Health Service and central government report breaches, it is still optional for other organizations.

As well, very few private companies accepted the offer made by the commissioner’s office for a free audit. While 71% of public bodies who were approached accepted the offer, only about 19% of private bodies did the same.