BELFAST, Aug 11 — Northern Ireland’s police chief apologised yesterday after the identities of thousands of officers and staff were mistakenly posted online, amid claims dissident republicans have obtained the information.

Chief Constable Simon Byrne described two leaks — revealed in a period of less than 24 hours — an "industrial-scale breach of data”, saying he was "deeply sorry” the sensitive details were now public.

Fears over safety were sparked on Tuesday when the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) said it had published in error the work location, surnames and first initials of roughly 10,000 officers and staff in response to a freedom of information request.

The force later revealed it was also investigating the theft of a laptop containing the names of more than 200 serving officers and staff.

Police are subject to sporadic attacks by dissident republicans in the province and were targeted frequently during the 30 years of conflict over British rule in Northern Ireland, which claimed more than 3,000 lives before the signing of 1998 peace accords.

Following an emergency meeting of the Northern Ireland Policing Board to address the escalating crisis, Byrne said police were "aware that dissident republicans claim to be in possession of some of this information” but had been unable to verify the assertions made on social media.

He said the PSNI’s priority was "remaining alert to the safety and welfare of both officers and staff as we deal with this unprecedented incident”.

In March the terrorism threat level in the UK-run province was increased to "severe” in response to an assassination attempt on a senior police officer John Caldwell, later claimed by the dissident republican group the New IRA.

Policing representatives in the region have spoken in the wake of the data breach of the extreme lengths to which officers will go in order hide their work for the PSNI.

The names of as many as 40 officers working for Britain’s domestic intelligence body MI5 in Northern Ireland are believed to be among the published information.

Pro-UK Ulster Unionist Party MLA Mike Nesbitt told BBC radio that among officers with the greatest concerns were those from Catholic or pro-Irish backgrounds some of whom kept their work a secret even from family members.

"They’re saying ‘we’re making sacrifices, we knew the risks, but we don’t deserve this to have our personal information in the public domain and we don’t know where that ends up’,” he said. — AFP