SAN ANTONIO – The City of San Antonio accidentally uploaded personal information of 10 candidates in the May 3 election online, according to the City Clerk’s Office.
On the first day of election filing, background documents containing personal and financial information from the candidates were made available online, the City Clerk’s Office said in a statement.
Recommended Videos
The information was accessible for about five hours but was immediately taken down once staff was made aware of the error.
The 10 affected candidates were notified and “mitigating measures are being taken,” according to the statement.
“We believe very few individuals accessed the data,” the statement says. “The City deeply regrets this incident and is taking steps to help prevent any future incidents of this nature.”
KSAT downloaded mayoral candidate applications on the first day of election filing. At the time of download, only five mayoral applicants were listed.
All five applications included personal information such as home addresses, photocopies of driver’s licenses and voter registration information. Others showed CPS Energy bills, a pay slip and the last four digits of Visa cards.
In a letter to the affected candidates, the city said they were taking action to address the incident.
“Our cybersecurity experts are conducting a review to determine whether your information was actually accessed while online. We are ensuring our employees are trained on the handling of sensitive information and understand the City’s policies regarding data protection.”
The city also recommended affected candidates monitor their credit reports and bank accounts and report any suspicious activity.
“We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused. Protecting your privacy is very important to us, and we are committed to taking all necessary steps to ensure that this does not happen again,” the email said.
‘Very, very annoying’
Councilwoman and mayoral candidate Adriana Rocha Garcia (D4) said the city did not share what specific information had been posted. She said she spent hours on the phone taking extra precautions, including freezing her credit.
“I didn’t need this added stress, I didn’t need the added expenses ... Now I have to upgrade my security system at home,” Rocha Garcia said. “It’s just very, very annoying.”
After reviewing the copy of her application downloaded by KSAT, she said it was “worse than (she) thought that it was.”
“I think that’s why I’m just so upset right now, because this is the very first step for a lot of candidates," Rocha Garcia said.
On Monday, mayoral candidate Mau Sanchez posted Ring camera footage to Instagram of a person who randomly showed up at his door.
“We received a sick visit from this gentleman. Unsettling. Luckily we live in Texas and the opposite side of that door isn’t one that anyone would want to force themselves through,” Sanchez said in the post.
It’s unclear if that person obtained Sanchez’s address via the city’s website.
Read also:
