You are absolutely right.

As if just having a password will make much difference if the data isn’t encrypted. lol.

t will only really present an obstacle to opening the disks in the original program. It is unlikely to prevent other methods of reading the text.

With almost no knowledge, I can think of a good few ways to do that very quickly using easily available software: Bin/hex readers; brute force password cracking, etc

Someone with high level programming skills, who stands to make make millions from a successful extraction of the data would have no difficulties whatsoever.

(Unless a fiendishly cunning and uncrackable password like “sesame” was used, ofc.)

Great bad science link, too, thanks.

Also on the topic of security, ID cards will be a complete joke, and the rewards for a ciminal gaining access to them huge. Not only are biometrics horribly insecure (see Ben Goldacre), but the central database, if we look at past government IT projects, will most likely suffer at least one major leak.

When will Labour snap out of this delusion that they should be trusted with safeguarding our data? They have shown themselves time and time again to be untrustworthy and incompetent.

I am sure you are right. I don’t think anything will derail the ID process.

I suppose I might have a faint hope that enough of these 25 million people might suddenly stop thinking that a unified identity database isn’t “inevitable” and “a weapon against terrorism” and all the other tosh that I hear.

So it’s not like they were in a jiffy bag and popped into the post box.

However. the package was neither recorded nor registered and breached HMRC’s own guidelines.
Given the level of carelessness here I wouldn’t be surprised to find that the password protecting the discs was “password” or “sesame” or “swordfish”

If you think this balls up will derail the ID process I fear you will be disappointed. Expect politicos to claim this fiasco was a learning experience that will tighten procedures and security.

As for the file size, assuming each family has a single line record, I can see 25 m of them fitting on two disks easily.