Former GCHQ Intern Jailed for Seven Years After Copying Top Secret Files to Mobile Phone

A former GCHQ intern has been sentenced to seven-and-a-half years in prison after copying top secret data files onto his mobile phone and taking them to his home computer, creating what prosecutors described as a significant risk to national security.

Hasaan Arshad, 25, a computer science student from Rochdale, Greater Manchester, pleaded guilty at the Old Bailey on 31 March 2025 to one offense of performing an unauthorized act on a computer system that created serious damage to national security.

The sentencing was handed down today at the same court following an investigation by the Metropolitan Police Service’s Counter-Terrorism Command.

Former GCHQ Intern Jailed

Arshad had previously completed a placement at GCHQ in 2019 before beginning another Industry Year placement that ran from 6 September 2021 to 26 August 2022. During this second placement, he worked as part of a technical development team handling highly sensitive matters stored on a top-secret network.

The breach occurred on 24 August 2022, when Arshad brought his personal work mobile phone into the workplace and connected it to his development workstation.

He then deliberately copied top-secret data files onto the device and removed it from the secure facility, later transferring the classified material to a computer system at his home address.

Police executed a search warrant at Arshad’s Rochdale home on 22 September 2022, where they discovered the top-secret data stored on an external hard drive connected to his desktop computer.

The investigation revealed that Arshad’s actions were a clear violation of the Official Secrets Act, which he had signed, and the security protocols outlined in his induction training.

Unrelated to his GCHQ activities, investigators also discovered indecent images of children on Arshad’s personal mobile phone during the search.

Police found 40 category A images and four category B images that had been created between 7 and 23 September 2022. Arshad pleaded guilty to two counts of making indecent images of children in January 2023.

The total sentence comprises six years for the computer misuse offense, with an additional 18 months for the category A indecent images charge served consecutively, and 18 months for the category B offense served concurrently.

Bethan David, Head of the CPS Counter Terrorism Division, emphasized the severity of Arshad’s actions: “His conduct was deliberate and intentional, and represented a flagrant breach of the obvious and necessary rules in place. By transferring the top-secret material to his home computer and therefore exposing it to the risks of an unsecure system, Arshad created a significant risk of damage to national security.”

David added that the Crown Prosecution Service would continue pursuing anyone who “knowingly jeopardizes and endangers the safety of our country.”

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