The Automated Police Search System (RIPOL) is a database of wanted persons, stolen vehicles and missing persons, weapons and artworks.
It is used to aid law enforcement activities and has strict access controls because the information on the database is so sensitive.
The Federal Data Protection and Information Commissioner (FDPIC) said on Wednesday that there are “indications of potentially serious violations of data protection regulations”.
Whistleblowers had earlier reported that outsourcing some operations to software provider Xplain had “led to breaches of data security with potentially high risks for those affected”, FDPIC added.
Both the border security and federal police services have now been called on by the data protection watchdog to answer the allegations.
Train vs plane: would you take a direct train between London and Geneva?
Eurostar is planning to run direct trains from Britain to Germany and Switzerland from the early 2030s. Would you favour the train over the plane? If not, why not?
ETH Zurich remains best university in continental Europe
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Swiss universities have once again fallen slightly behind in international comparison. In the annual university rankings, they recorded slightly more losses than gains overall. However, three Swiss universities are among the 100 best in Europe.
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Hackers steal Swiss police and customs data
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Hackers have published data from the federal police and customs offices on the Darknet, after an attack on the servers of the host company.
Swiss government and Federal Railways hit by cyberattacks
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Swiss federal government websites and the online portal of the Swiss Federal Railways have been victims of malicious online attacks.
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Only 94 ransomware incidents were reported in the first half of the year, but the real number is believed to be closer to 2,000.
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If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.