The Bible Society has been fined £100,000 over computer security failings that allowed hackers to access the personal details of more than 400,000 mainly Christian backers.

The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) said the details of supporters - including home addresses, telephone numbers and bank accounts - were compromised by cyber attackers who guessed the “weak password” of one the charity’s databases.

The password was the same as the username on the account, set up in 2009 but not hacked until November 2016. The account contained details of 417,000 Bible Society supporters.

The ICO complained, in issuing the large fine, that the cyber attack caused “distress” because the “religious belief of the 417,000 supporters could be inferred”.

The fine is partuclurly embarrassing for the Bible Society which is one most distinguished charities in the UK. It has been operating for more than 200 years, distributing and promoting the bible in the UK and overseas while its patron is Her Majesty the Queen.

But a source close to the charity complained that the ICO had issued an arbitrarily large fine in punishment and had wrongly concluded that the Christian beliefs of its supporters was something they would wish to remain private.