Lancashire Police have referred themselves to the police watchdog over contact the force had with Nicola Bulley prior to her disappearance.
The Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) said they were assessing the information to determine whether an investigation would be necessary over the contact officers had with the mum-of-two on January 10.
Confirming a referral had been made to the watchdog, a spokesman for the IOPC said: "This afternoon we received a referral from Lancashire Constabulary regarding contact the force had with Nicola Bulley on January 10, prior to her disappearance.
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"We are assessing the available information to determine whether an investigation into that contact may be required and if so, who should conduct that investigation."
The Home Office said it was receiving regular updates from the force about its handling of the case - including "why personal details about Nicola was briefed out at this stage of the investigation".
Police were criticised by MPs and campaign groups for disclosing that Nicola suffered "some significant issues with alcohol brought on by her ongoing struggles with the menopause".
The Conservative police and crime commissioner for Lancashire, Andrew Snowden, said the force was being "as transparent as they can be" following the press conference.
In a statement issued on Thursday, Ms Bulley's family said people needed to stop "making wild theories up" about her private life. The statement, issued through the force, said: "We, as a family, believe that the public focus has become distracted from finding Nikki, and more about speculation and rumours into her and Paul's private life.
"As a family, we were aware beforehand that Lancashire Police, last night, released a statement with some personal details about our Nikki.
"Although we know that Nikki would not have wanted this, there are people out there speculating and threatening to sell stories about her. This is appalling and needs to stop."
"The public focus has to be on finding her and not making up wild theories about her personal life. Despite what some media outlets and individuals are suggesting, we are being updated daily and receive support from our family liaison officers."
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