Halton police suspend their use of Crime Stoppers after a data breach that included some Halton information

What police said

The Halton Regional Police Service (HRPS) said in a statement dated October 22, 2026 that it is aware of a reported cybersecurity incident involving the third-party platform used by Crime Stoppers organizations. The service said it had been made aware that some data related to Halton was included in the breach, and that it has suspended its use of Crime Stoppers while it awaits further information on the scope and impact of the breach.

HRPS said Crime Stoppers operates independently from the police service, and that the Crime Stoppers tip-management platform is not connected to its internal systems. It said it is investigating and assessing potential impacts of the incident on police operations.

How to report now

HRPS encourages anyone with information about a crime or public safety concern to contact the service directly through its existing reporting channels, and notes that this does not provide the anonymity associated with the Crime Stoppers program. The service's Calling Police page lists 9-1-1 for emergencies and 905-825-4777 for non-emergencies.

Questions about the breach, the scope of any affected information and the measures taken in response should go to the Canadian Crime Stoppers Association, HRPS said. As of the morning of October 30, the service's news releases list no update on the suspension.