A London man has been charged following an investigation into unauthorized access of London Hydro customer information earlier this year.
London police say they received a report from London Hydro on June 19 regarding a suspected compromise of customer information.
Investigators determined that between June 5 and June 17, an individual accessed customer accounts and obtained customer information without authorization.
As part of the investigation, police executed a warrant at a London residence on Aug. 13. Several electronic devices were seized and later examined.
Police say forensic examination of the devices uncovered evidence linking a suspect to the unauthorized access of London Hydro customer information.
As a result of the investigation, Rony Hotimsk, 40, of London has been charged with fraudulently obtaining a computer service and mischief over $5,000.
The accused was arrested Friday morning and is expected to reappear in London court on Dec. 29 in relation to the charges.
Court documents show Hotimsk was released on an undertaking requiring him to surrender his passport to London police and not leave Ontario.
London Hydro chief executive Ysni Semsedini thanked police for their work on the investigation.
“We are grateful to the London Police Service for its collaboration and diligent work in investigating this incident,” he said in a statement to The London Free Press.
“Over the past several months, our teams have worked closely to understand what occurred and to help protect our customers and their information,” the statement added. “Given the complexity of cases like this, charges are not commonly laid. Today’s announcement speaks to the expertise, skill and dedication of our police partners.”
In June, the utility said the breach potentially exposed customers’ personal information, including names, email addresses, phone numbers, account numbers, service addresses, pricing plans, contract start dates, meter numbers and meter types.
But no sensitive information, such as payment or banking details, was compromised, London Hydro said.
The utility warned customers to be alert to suspicious requests for information, saying it would communicate only by mail or email. It also began providing credit monitoring services to affected customers in late June.
Anyone with information related to the investigation is asked to London police’s Cyber Crime Unit at 519-661-5670 or [email protected] .
Information can also be provided through Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477.
– With files from LFP reporter Dale Carruthers
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