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18
Jun 2021
Exclusive: Data breach at Harrogate council causes anguish for business
District businesses could be at risk of fraudulent activity after Harrogate Borough Council warned of a possible data breach.
The Stray Ferret has seen an email sent by the council's Revenues Welfare and Customer Services department encouraging businesses to to monitor any suspicious financial transactions.
The extent of the breach is unknown, but the email said an online form had been used to try to apply for a restart grant against local business rates accounts.
One business owner, who wishes to stay anonymous, said the email did not give full details of exactly what information had been stolen, or how.
The source said they had already received two phishing emails before the council contacted them about the issue this afternoon:
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In hopes of protecting firms, the council said it had closed the affected business rates accounts and updated the online form, which is usually automatically filled with elements of a company's details.
The business owner said they have been told not to call the council but instead send any complaints via email. They have already reported the incident to the Information Commissioner's Office.
They said they had been told 440 businesses had been affected, but The Stray Ferret was unable to substantiate that number.
A council spokesman said:
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