Burlington Hydro hit with cyber breach, may affect customers

Burlington Hydro has confirmed that a cyber breach occurred that has potentially exposed its customers’ personal information.

The hydro company says they were notified on Jan. 22 that one of their third-party vendors experienced a data breach.

All Burlington Hydro customers may be affected. However, the company’s internal investigation indicates that no financial information was accessed as a result of the breach.

Information that may have been accessed includes:

• Customer information, including name, home/service and billing address, phone numbers and email addresses;
• Billing information, including account numbers, payment amounts and past due balances; and
• Meter reading data for water and electricity usage.

The vendor took immediate action to minimize the exposure of personal information, and prevent future breaches.

“Protecting the privacy and security of our customers is a top priority for BHI,” Burlington Hydro said in a statement.

“We deeply regret any concern or inconvenience this may cause.”

The incident was reported to the Office of Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario, who has opened an investigation file.

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