Confirmed

Kitakyushu City: flawed PDF masking left personal data of 1,139 people viewable in released files

After self-checks prompted by other cities’ masking failures, 57 files made with print-menu PDF conversion still allowed masked text to be viewed via certain operations; disclosed July 3, 2026. Files recovered/destroyed; no secondary use found.

Last updated: 2026-11-09

Overview

1,139 individuals (name, address, phone, etc.). 395 corporate seal impressions described separately and not used as the count. No sensitive personal data or My Number.

Timeline

  1. Occurred
  2. Discovered
  3. Disclosed

Organization response

Per the notice, the organisation investigated and contained the incident, notified individuals and offered monitoring or protective resources.

What you can do

Be wary of emails, SMS or calls impersonating the organisation; do not open links or attachments or enter passwords or card details. Change reused passwords on other services.

Sources

  1. 黒塗り(マスキング)処理の自主点検結果について北九州市 · 2026-11-09

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