City of Belleville Issues Statement Regarding Privacy Matter

The City of Belleville is issuing the following statement regarding a privacy matter involving information that was unintentionally made publicly accessible through part of its municipal GIS mapping system. 

 Due to an administrative error, limited property information from publicly available assessment roll records, along with certain contact information, including telephone numbers and email addresses, was inadvertently made available online through a publicly accessible GIS service. Once the issue was identified, access to the information was immediately removed. 

The information did not contain passwords, financial account information, payment card information, Social Insurance Numbers, driver’s license numbers, or other authentication credentials. The City emphasizes that this incident was not the result of a cyberattack or malicious data breach. 

The City takes the protection of personal information seriously. In accordance with its obligations under the Municipal Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act, the City has notified the Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario and is following all required privacy breach procedures. If it is determined that any of your specific personal information was accessed without authorization, you will be notified directly. 

The City is reviewing its internal processes and controls and will take any additional steps necessary to ensure a similar situation does not occur in the future.