eThekwini Municipality
HIGH RISKData breach — September 2016
In September 2016, the new eThekwini eServices website in South Africa was launched with a number of security holes that lead to the leak of over 98k residents' personal information and utility bills across 82k unique email addresses. Emails were sent prior to launch containing passwords in plain text and the site allowed anyone to download utility bills without sufficient authentication. Various methods of customer data enumeration was possible and phishing attacks began appearing the day after launch.
search Check if you were affected — freeData exposed in this breach
What happened in the eThekwini Municipality data breach?
In September 2016, the new eThekwini eServices website in South Africa was launched with a number of security holes that lead to the leak of over 98k residents' personal information and utility bills across 82k unique email addresses. Emails were sent prior to launch containing passwords in plain text and the site allowed anyone to download utility bills without sufficient authentication. Various methods of customer data enumeration was possible and phishing attacks began appearing the day after launch.
The exposed data included 11 types of personal information. Because passwords were exposed, users who reused their password on other sites are at particular risk. Learn more about what a data breach means for you.
Quick answer — was eThekwini Municipality hacked?
Yes. eThekwini Municipality was breached in September 2016. The breach exposed 81,830 records including dates of birth, deceased date, email addresses. This breach has been independently verified. If your email was involved, your data may still be at risk today. Check if you were affected.
Why was the eThekwini Municipality breach so dangerous?
The eThekwini Municipality breach exposed 81,830 records — that is a large number of compromised accounts. The combination of dates of birth, deceased date, email addresses makes this a high-risk breach that requires immediate action.
Because passwords were exposed, attackers can use credential stuffing to automatically test your eThekwini Municipality password against hundreds of other websites. If you reused your password anywhere, those accounts are now at risk. Read more about what happens to your data after a breach.
Don't wait to find out — check if your email was exposed in this breach now.
What data was stolen in the eThekwini Municipality breach?
Dates of birth — used to verify identity for account takeover and fraud
Deceased date — used to verify identity for account takeover and fraud
Email addresses — used for phishing attacks and credential stuffing against your other accounts
Genders — may be combined with other breach data to build a profile for targeted attacks
Government issued IDs — enables full identity theft including fraudulent credit applications
Names — used to build profiles and target you with personalised scams
Passport numbers — may be combined with other breach data to build a profile for targeted attacks
Passwords — can be used to access your accounts directly or cracked to reveal your actual password
Phone numbers — enables SIM swapping attacks and targeted SMS phishing scams
Physical addresses — combined with other data, used for identity theft and physical fraud
Utility bills — may be combined with other breach data to build a profile for targeted attacks
Is the eThekwini Municipality breach still dangerous in 2026?
Yes. Stolen data from the eThekwini Municipality breach remains dangerous years after the incident. Research shows that over 65% of stolen credentials from older breaches have never been changed by the account holders. Attackers routinely compile data from multiple breaches to build complete profiles, and credentials from 2016 are still actively used in credential stuffing attacks today.
Personal information like email addresses, phone numbers, and dates of birth never expire. Even if you changed your eThekwini Municipality password, the other exposed data can be combined with information from other breaches to target you. Learn more about how long stolen data stays dangerous.
Frequently asked about the eThekwini Municipality breach
Approximately 81,830 user records were exposed in the eThekwini Municipality breach in September 2016.
Yes. Leaked credentials are actively used in credential stuffing attacks years after a breach. If you reused your eThekwini Municipality password elsewhere and haven't changed it, those accounts remain at risk today.
Enter your email in the free checker on EmailLeaked. We scan 12 billion+ breach records including the full eThekwini Municipality dataset and tell you instantly whether your email was exposed and what data was taken.
Change your eThekwini Municipality password immediately, change any other account where you used the same password, enable two-factor authentication on all important accounts, and monitor for phishing emails over the next 90 days.
Who was affected by the eThekwini Municipality breach?
The eThekwini Municipality data breach affected approximately 81,830 users who had accounts with the service. While not the largest breach on record, it still represents a significant number of compromised accounts in our database of 970+ known breaches.
If you ever created an account with eThekwini Municipality or used their services, your data may have been included in this breach. Check your email now to find out. You can also read our guide on what to do immediately after a data breach.
If your email was in the eThekwini Municipality breach
Change your eThekwini Municipality password immediately
Go to eThekwini Municipality and change your password right now. Use a strong, unique password that you have never used anywhere else.
Change any account sharing that password
If you used the same password on other sites, change it on every one of them. Attackers test stolen credentials on hundreds of popular sites within hours.
Enable two-factor authentication
Turn on 2FA on eThekwini Municipality and every important account. Even if your password is known, attackers cannot get in without the second factor.
Check your other accounts for this breach
Run a full email check to see every breach your email appears in — not just this one.
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