Piles of papers carrying sensitive military information have been discovered spread across a city roadway. They contain soldiers’ ranks, emails, shift schedules, and weapon issue details, as well as information that appears to be related to accessing weapon storage and an intrusion detection system.
On March 16, a football fan discovered the documents spilling out of a black rubbish bag in Newcastle’s Scotswood district, and according to information security analyst Gary Hibberd, they constituted a “significant” threat to the individuals mentioned in them.
The Ministry of Defence (MoD) stated that it was looking into the problem “urgently” and initiating an internal probe. The papers appear to be associated with British Army regiments and quarters at Catterick Garrison.
One document was labelled “armoury keys and hold IDS codes,” which the BBC believes refers to accessing an armoury (a storage location for weapons and ammunition) and an intruder detection system.
‘Sensitive’ army papers found scattered in street. These papers contain confidential information about personnel, amongst other things 😳
This country is a laughing stock #Security #ArmyPapers https://t.co/JF18bkhFt3— Suenews (@SueWhitake10081) March 28, 2025
Another was marked with the words “official – sensitive,” which, according to government guidelines, can in some situations indicate that the information could pose a “threat to life” if disclosed.
The split documents featured a wide range of information, including basic medical advice, ingredient order sheets, and people’s ID numbers and email addresses. Mike Gibbard of Gateshead noticed the papers while parking his car before travelling to a fanzone to watch Newcastle United’s Carabao Cup final victory against Liverpool at Wembley Stadium.
“I peered down and started to see names on bits of papers, and numbers, and I thought ‘what’s that?’,” he said. The papers were piled up against a wall in a black bag and “in the road, underneath cars, spread all the way up the road”. “I found a lot more on the other side of the road that wasn’t in a bag.”
Mr Gibbard said he asked his wife: “Why is it here? This shouldn’t be here, anyone could pick it up.” Describing the find as “crazy”, he said he saw “details of the perimeter, the patrol, checking weapons in and out, requests for leave, mobile phone numbers, high ranking officers”.
Gary Hibberd, an information security consultant with 35 years of experience, stated that the records posed a “significant” threat to the persons identified. “They could be easily identified through social media, they could potentially be coerced, they could be harassed,” he said.
Government guidance on sensitive information discloses that in the wrong hands, such documents could cause “moderate, short-term damage” to UK or allied military activities. It adds: “However, in some exceptional circumstances, the compromise of more sensitive official information could lead to a threat to life.”
Hundreds of documents reportedly containing information about soldiers and personnel based in Catterick have been discovered on a street in Newcastle.
Overnight, MOD confirmed to @ForcesNews that the documents were handed into police + that it’s launched an urgent investigation
— James Wharton (@jameswharton) March 28, 2025
All such documents should be disposed of in a “burn bag” or shredded using approved equipment. Mr Gibbard reported the discovery to Northumbria Police. A spokesperson confirmed the force “received a report that potentially confidential documents had been found on Railway Street in the Scotswood area of Newcastle”.
“The documents have now been handed to the Ministry of Defence.” An MoD spokesperson said: “We are looking into this urgently and the matter is the subject of an ongoing internal investigation.”
