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FUJ00176280
FUJ00176280
Telephone: I GRO I:
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htip:tiwww.iel.com
Keith Baines 7" August 2001
Head of Commercial
Post Office Counters Limited
2™ Floor
Calthorpe House
15-20 Phoenix Place
London WC1X 0DG Our Ref: CLS/jla/281
Dear Keith,
Lost Data
In response to your letter dated 1° August, 2001 I set out below the current
position on this issue.
Firstly, I would like to assure you that the issue of data loss is receiving an
appropriate high priority within ICL Pathway. Significant effort has already been
expended in attempting to re-source the lost data and to obviate a recurrence of a
situation that could not reasonably have been foreseen.
The meeting of the joint Audit and Security teams to which you refer actually took
place on 18" June. As you say, a number of action items were agreed and
documented in the minutes. It was also agreed that ICL Pathway would make
available an ongoing status report on the Problem Management Database that is
maintained by Customer Services. To this end we have been liaising closcly with
the PON Problem Manager assigned to this incident (Richard Benton) and updates
have been made available via this route to both PON Audit and Internal Crime
Managers.
In order to provide assurance as to the extent of the loss, ICL Pathway undertook
as requested to provide audit data for a week before and a week after the break in
the TMS Journal using original RFI criteria. This work has been completed as part
of RFI 8. Charles Leighton was advised and subsequently requested that this be
held pending the outcome of further efforts to recover the missing data. I shall
ensure that this is now forwarded.
We have also looked at other systems could be used to recover the lost data and
have identified a number of CS backup tapes that may contain a suitable source.
An urgent internal Change Proposal has been raised to explore the possibility of
recovering this data and if suitable, restoring it to the Audit archive. Should this
prove a viable option, work to recover the data will necessarily be meticulous and
painstaking so as not to risk compromising potentially the only remaining source
ICL Pathway Lud Registered is Englan no 3011567 Registered office 26 Finsiury Square Londen EC2A SL
continuation page 2
of the missing data. In addition, it will be essential to ensure that an appropriate
audit trail is recorded in respect of any recovery action so that we can attest to the
continued integrity of the data.
ICL Pathway will also be introducing a ‘read after write’ activity to digital linear
tapes. This protects against the accidental use of flawed media, which has been
established as the cause of the loss. Testing has been completed successfully and
deployment targeted for urgent SOG Release. This will be in operation from
3.9.2001. In addition, automated media management will be introduced from
20.8.2001 to minimise manual tape intervention.
Whilst the action we have taken mitigates a recurrence, we have advised PON
Audit and Security Managers that measures to remove altogether the risk of future
tape corruption can be achieved only by a complete re-design of the current
solution.
We shall continue to progress this issue as a matter of urgency and provide regular
updates via the problem database.
Yours sincerely,
Colin Lenton-Smith
Director, Commercial and Finance
FUJ00176280
FUJ00176280