Mississauga-Based Government Office Accidentally Reveals Private Client Information
Published January 22, 2019 at 3:08 am
If you have accessed a social services office in Mississauga, some of your personal information might have been leaked in a privacy breach.
CTV News recently reported that a privacy breach at the Mississauga Ontario Disability Support Program (ODSP) has impacted 45,000 people.
NEW: Privacy Breach at ODSP, affecting 45,000 people.
Recipients began receiving this letter over the weekend telling them about a breach. An Excel spreadsheet with names, client ID numbers and email addresses were accidentally sent to 100 people. #onpoli pic.twitter.com/PlOwrsElF2
— Colin D'Mello CTVNews (@ColinDMello) January 21, 2019
In a letter sent out to clients, the Ministry of Children, Community and Social Services said that leak occurred due to an error at the Mississauga office.
In the letter, the ministry says that on Dec. 20, it sent an email to approximately 100 ODSP recipients about service changes they are making to give recipients online access to their ODSP case information.
The ministry said an attachment was inadvertently included in that email that contained individual’s names, identification numbers and email addresses.
In the letter to affected clients, the ministry said that the accidental attachment did not contain any personal financial information or home addresses.
“We have contacted all individuals to ask them to delete the email and confirm that it was deleted. We are also reviewing our internal processes to prevent such errors in the future,” the letter reads.
On Jan. 21, Lisa MacLeod, the minister of social services, took to Twitter to apologize for the incident.
As soon as I was notified of this breach I took steps to ensure those impacted & the privacy commissioner were notified & that processes & procedures were reviewed so mistakes like this don’t happen again. I apologize & want to assure the public that we take this seriously. https://t.co/I0mzFoNwYT
— Lisa MacLeod (@MacLeodLisa) January 21, 2019
“As soon as I was notified of this breach I took steps to ensure those impacted & the privacy commissioner were notified & that processes & procedures were reviewed so mistakes like this don’t happen again. I apologize & want to assure the public that we take this seriously,” MacLeod wrote.
In the letter, the ministry advises anyone who was affected by the breach to consult with their caseworker.
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