City of Darwin

The City of Darwin accidentally leaked email addresses of thousands of Territorians ahead of the next round of the MyDarwin economic stimulus voucher scheme.

What Happened

When sending out information about the MyDarwin voucher scheme—a local economic stimulus program—the City of Darwin used an email distribution method that exposed all recipient email addresses to each other. Instead of using blind carbon copy (BCC) to protect privacy, the email was sent in a way that made all recipients' email addresses visible.

The error exposed the email addresses of thousands of Territory residents who had registered for or shown interest in the MyDarwin voucher program.

Impact on Individuals

Affected residents faced potential spam and phishing risks from the exposure of their email addresses. While limited to contact information only, the error violated expectations of privacy when dealing with government communications.

Organisational Response

The City of Darwin acknowledged the error and apologised to affected residents. The council reviewed email distribution procedures to prevent similar incidents and committed to using appropriate privacy-protecting methods for bulk communications.