Unacceptable amounts of personal data are being lost in the UK, according to the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO).

Figures released by the privacy watchdog show that 711 public and private bodies have reported data breaches in the last two years.

Of these, 231 involved theft, the organisation revealed.

Deputy Information Officer David Smith said that although the majority of companies and public bodies get data protection right, a significant minority is failing to take the matter seriously enough.

Commenting on the ICO's findings, Marc Hocking, Chief Technology Officer for Becrypt, said: "Far too much personal data is still being unnecessarily downloaded from secure servers on to unencrypted laptops, USB sticks, and other portable media," he commented.

"The recent statement from the Information Commissioner's Office that levels of UK data loss are 'too high' yet again reinforces the need for organisations to ensure that they treat data with due care and diligence. It is essential to ensure that the right technology solutions are put in place.

"The proposed £500,000 fines may be an effective wake-up call for businesses, but an Information Assurance policy will not appear overnight. Implementing technology is important, but it is key to remember that there is more to the problem than this.

"Companies need to sew the importance of data protection and information assurance into the very fabric of the company; there needs to be education for employees, as well as regular updates to security policy. Businesses need to ensure they don't use a band-aid to cover the potential bullet-hole of data loss."

Further details are available online.