National Health Service staff faced significant emotional distress while managing a helpline established after a major data breach exposed the health records of 8,003 individuals, based on information published by The Register.
The breach occurred when the Royal Cornwall Hospitals NHS Trust inadvertently published an Excel workbook in response to a Freedom of Information request in February 2023. The file contained hidden pivot tables that revealed sensitive sickness absence records for staff and non-trust workers. A member of the public discovered the exposure in November 2025. The subsequent helpline, staffed by clinical governance employees with minimal training, operated for 11 weeks. Handlers reported managing calls from distressed individuals, including those concerned about domestic safety, while simultaneously discovering their own data had been compromised. The incident stemmed from procedural failures, including the use of an incorrect department to process the request and the omission of mandatory data sanitization steps like converting files to CSV. The trust has since implemented stricter approval processes, requiring senior information governance oversight for spreadsheet disclosures. The Information Commissioner's Office has closed the case following the implementation of these corrective measures, and the trust has issued a formal apology to those affected.
Source: The Register
