City reveals thousands of Hamilton Water customers may have been subject to data breach – Hamilton

The City of Hamilton is alerting customers of a recent ransomware attack connected with a third party vendor that sends emails to water customers.

In a release, staff say the “possible data breach” may has ties to Neptune Technology Group, who replace and maintain water meters, and a third-party mailing vendor that informs residents of a need to replace a meter.

“Hamilton Water considers this is a low-risk incident for residents, but felt it important to inform the community,” the city said in a statement.

It’s believed 2,387 out of about 156,000 accounts may have been subject to attack giving access to personal information like names and mailing addresses.

Neptune Technology Group has stopped using and sharing information with the mailing vendor as a precaution.

City staff say the mailing vendor has hired a consultant to investigate the details and nature of the attack.

“Residents can take precautionary measures to safeguard their information such as remaining vigilant by reviewing account statements and monitor credit reports for suspicious activity,” the city said.

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