A digital database with information about people who are homeless meant to help co-ordinate access to services in Hamilton is among the ongoing casualties of a cyberattack that struck the city three months ago.
A product of the Homeless Individuals and Families Information System (HIFIS) is a “by-name list” of people who are homeless that helps the sector prioritize and refer them to housing and support programs.
“We have adapted by creating manual processes that are being implemented with our shelter partners; this involves less data collection and is primarily intended to support day-to-day shelter capacity optimization,” city manager Marnie Cluckie told The Spectator on Tuesday.
The city’s IT team is working on bringing the federally mandated data-collection tool back online, but when that will happen “is not known at this time,” Cluckie said via email, noting federal partners “are aware” of the issue.
The HIFIS hiatus has thrown an “old school” curveball at shelter operators when it comes to historical information about those seeking beds, says Shawn MacKeigan, associate executive director of programs at Mission Services.
Instead of relying on the digital database, which compiles people’s information with their consent, staff can dig into limited physical files on-site, ask clients to recall information or call other agencies, MacKeigan explained.
“There are some ways to access that information, but it does impact the speed and the flow with which we can access it.”
HIFIS can tell shelter operators which services — whether related to shelters, housing, social assistance or health — patrons have accessed.
“If you were engaged with a worker or physician or somebody who’s working in the housing and homelessness sector, we might be able to reconnect you to some of those supports that you were previously connected with,” MacKeigan said.
Hamilton is still recovering from a sweeping ransomware attack that targeted the municipal IT network on Feb. 25, affecting a slew of city operations, including HSR scheduling, worker overtime pay, issuance of building permits and public access to computers at library branches.
In ransomware attacks, cybercriminals can block access to files and threaten to release sensitive data if victims don’t make payments.
Hamilton city officials say they didn’t pay a ransom but haven’t disclosed how much the attackers demanded. So far, they have said there’s “no evidence” that personal data been compromised.
HIFIS comes in handy when trying to track down transient patients for followup care, says Dr. Kerry Beal, lead physician of the Shelter Health Network.
Without HIFIS access, Mission Services has continued to collect information but the agency “can’t keep all kinds of data on the side of our desks,” MacKeigan said. “We’ve got to keep it pretty basic.”
Roughly 1,600 people were homeless in Hamilton as of January 2024, according to the city’s online housing and homelessness “dashboard.”
Last week, city staff told council the number of people living in encampments has grown in the past year. There are roughly 50 sites and an estimated 200 residents, compared to nearly 150 last August.
In their presentation, bylaw and housing staff said the HIFIS hang-up had resulted in less detailed reports than normal.
“Unfortunately, the cybersecurity incident has caused some concerns for our team related to access to data,” said Dan Smith, acting municipal law enforcement director.
Once HIFIS is back online, the city will “work in collaboration” with shelter operators “to ensure data collection resumes and is robust, Cluckie said Tuesday.
“At this time based on the information available, once we have access to HIFIS, we expect to regain full access to our historical data and have no reason to believe that personal data has been lost.”
