Fukui City: masking in disclosed files could be removed, exposing data on 1,628 people and 132 corporations

1. 2026-09-14

   A citizen who had requested records reported that masked parts could be read. [1]

2. 2026-10-01

   The city confirmed that the masking could be removed with certain steps. [1]

3. 2026-11-02

   The city announced the issue and mailed apologies to those whose addresses it knew. [1] [2]

The issue covers 41 documents, affecting 1,628 people (counting repeats) and 132 corporations. The masked parts include names, addresses, dates of birth, phone numbers and email addresses. No misuse has been found. [1]

By 2 November, 13 sets had been returned and replaced with paper copies. According to the Fukui Shimbun, requesters reported deleting another 13, and the requesters of 2 do not intend to return them. [1] [2]

From May 2025, partly disclosed records were also handed out as data on CD-R, although city rules allowed data copies only for fully disclosed records. Checks that the masking was done safely were also lacking. [1] [2]