The Government of the Northwest Territories (GNWT) is informing the public of a privacy breach following a break-in that occurred in the department of Education, Culture and Employment’s (ECE) headquarters in Yellowknife. The break-in occurred on the first floor of the Yellowknife Lahm Ridge Tower building in the early morning hours of March 16, 2023 and items including computer hard drives were stolen.

The hard drives contain the personal information of Income Assistance (IA) clients from 2006-2014. ECE immediately reported the theft to the RCMP, the Northwest Territories Information and Privacy Commissioner, and conducted an internal investigation.

This breach is estimated to impact approximately 3,000 individuals. All individuals with current contact information on file have been sent a letter in the mail notifying them individually. Personal information contained on the hard drives is believed to include client names, spouse and dependent names, mailing addresses, dates of birth, marital status, and IA financial case reports (2006 – 2014).  In some cases, Social Insurance (SIN) and/or Health Care Numbers (HCN) were listed. 

Following the discovery of the breach, staff immediately began a comprehensive audit of the 2006-2014 client files to create an accurate inventory of affected individuals. The department continues to assist the RCMP, and a final privacy breach report is anticipated to be submitted to the Information and Privacy Commissioner by April 28, 2023.

If you were an IA client between 2006-2014 and have questions or concerns, or did not receive a letter, please contact Sarah Madsen, Manager, Income Security Programs, ECE at (867) 767- 9355 ext. 71319 or Sarah_Madsen@gov.nt.ca.

For media requests, please contact:

Briony Grabke
Manager, Public Affairs and Communications
Education, Culture and Employment
Government of the Northwest Territories 
Briony_grabke@gov.nt.ca 

867-767-9352 ext. 71073