Halifax Water has confirmed that it will continue to send paper bills to its customers as it works to resolve a recent privacy breach affecting 16 accounts. The online portal for accessing bills has been offline since March due to the incident.
An independent forensic investigation revealed that a vulnerability in the third-party platform supporting the Customer Connect portal allowed an external party to access personal information associated with the 16 affected accounts. Halifax Water clarified that this incident was not a cyberattack on its systems or related to the management of water and wastewater services.
The compromised information included customer names, email addresses, service or home addresses, account details, and security questions and answers. However, no financial data was compromised. Affected customers were notified in June and provided with guidance on next steps, along with direct contact information for Halifax Water representatives.
Halifax Water CEO Kenda MacKenzie expressed regret over the situation and assured customers that the utility is diligently investigating the matter to safeguard customer interests and address contractual and insurance concerns appropriately.
The timeline of events indicated that the vulnerability was initially identified in November 2025 and reported to the vendor, Avertra. Although a patch was applied, a subsequent software update in January 2026 re-exposed the vulnerability, leading to the security breach.
Following the incident, Halifax Water has enhanced its cybersecurity measures, including increased testing and training, to promptly address such vulnerabilities in the future. The online portal remains offline as security enhancements are being implemented, with no confirmed timeline for its restoration.
As the work continues, Halifax Water will keep customers informed and ensure bills are sent via mail.