News

Natural Resources Wales confirms data breach

05 Sep 2026 2 minute read

NRW offices in Cardiff. Photo via Google

Nation.Cymru staff

Sensitive personal information relating to current and former Natural Resources Wales employees has been exposed in a data breach.

The public body said a spreadsheet containing employee information had been inadvertently published on its website, potentially revealing details including ethnicity, disability status, religion, sexual orientation and caring responsibilities.

The breach affects people who worked for Natural Resources Wales (NRW) between April 2013 and March 2018.

Other information potentially disclosed included employees’ Welsh language ability and other equality monitoring data, although NRW said not every category applied to every person affected.

The organisation has reported the breach to the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) and is contacting current and former employees.

NRW said the information had been removed from its website after it became aware of the breach and it had obtained confirmation that it had been permanently deleted.

It said there was currently no evidence that the information had been misused.

In a statement, NRW said: “We sincerely apologise that this incident occurred and recognise the concern and uncertainty it may cause to those affected.

“As soon as we became aware of the issue, we took immediate steps to contain the incident and investigate the circumstances surrounding the disclosure.”

NRW said it had also reviewed other information it had published to identify any similar risks and had carried out a full investigation.

It added: “We have undertaken a full investigation and are continuing to review our processes and controls to help prevent a recurrence.

“While we are not aware of any evidence that the information has been misused, we encourage individuals to remain vigilant for any unexpected communications and to report any concerns.”

Anyone who believes they may have been affected but has not received correspondence from NRW has been asked to contact its people data team at [email protected].

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