A Surrey college has apologised after accidentally e-mailing the private medical details of more than 300 students to an entire year group.
The list, meant for Godalming College teachers, names one student with a brain tumour and another with anorexia.
Staff tried to recall the message and then asked its lower sixth year group to delete the information.
The Information Commissioner’s Office said it was investigating a possible data protection breach.
A spokesman added: “Under the Data Protection Act, information related to the health of an individual is considered to be sensitive data.
Read more on BBC.
In related coverage, Amy Taylor of Get Surrey reports, in part:
Documents intended for staff, featuring the names of students with physical, mental or learning difficulties, as well as details of their conditions, were emailed to a list of lower sixth students on Monday (April 4).
Details such as family histories, child protection issues, and eating disorders were leaked, causing the college to shut down the internal email system in an attempt to retrieve the emails.