Kent Police have been fined £80,000 after officers passed on sensitive personal details of a woman who had accused her partner of domestic abuse.

The Information Commissioner's Office has censured the force after the entire contents of the woman's mobile phone was passed to the suspect - a police officer - via their solicitor.

The watchdog claimed the breach was a "serious contravention" of the Data Protection Act.

Now, after an investigation, ICO head of enforcement Stephen Eckersley said he hoped the level of the fine would serve as a warning to others.

He said: "Kent Police was investigating a serious matter yet the need to take proper care of the personal details they were entrusted with does not appear to have been taken seriously.

"Today’s fine should serve as a warning to other forces that it is vital they have robust measures in place to protect individuals’ personal data and guard against such inappropriate disclosures."

The complainant had given her phone to Kent Police because it contained a video recording she said supported her accusation against her partner, who was a police officer.

Her phone also contained lots of other files, with sensitive personal data including text messages and family photographs.

The officer was subject to a professional standards investigation by Kent Police into misconduct.

"Kent Police was investigating a serious matter yet the need to take proper care of the personal details they were entrusted with does not appear to have been taken seriously" - Stephen Eckersley

Kent Police sent the officer’s solicitor the data contained in the woman’s mobile phone by mistake in advance of the misconduct hearing. The solicitor then disclosed the information to his client.

An ICO investigation found that Kent Police had inappropriate security measures, and that it had committed a serious breach of the law, likely to have caused substantial distress.

A statement released by police today said: "Kent Police has been informed of the outcome of an investigation by the Information Commissioner’s Office and accepts the decision.

"When the data breach became apparent Kent Police referred itself to the Information Commissioner and fully cooperated with the investigation.

"As soon as the breach was identified a new standard operating procedure was implemented to ensure that a similar error cannot be made in the future."