Police forces across Canada stop using Crime Stoppers after the P3 tip-platform breach, including Ottawa, Winnipeg, Toronto, Peel, Hamilton, Halton and Niagara
After CBC reported that the March hack of Navigate360's P3 platform exposed more than 1.5 million Canadian Crime Stoppers tips, police services spent Oct 23 suspending or pausing their use of the program.
- Official statements: Barrie Police suspended promotion of Crime Stoppers as a reporting option, and St. Thomas Police paused participation in St. Thomas–Elgin Crime Stoppers, both citing the breach at Navigate360's P3 platform.
- Reported by news outlets: Toronto, Hamilton, Halton, Peel, Niagara, Ottawa and Winnipeg police also suspended use, and Crime Stoppers Guelph Wellington stopped taking tips.
- P3 is used by Crime Stoppers programs worldwide, so organizations outside Canada that use it should ask the vendor what was taken.
The takeaway for anyone running a whistleblower or anonymous-tip system: anonymity depends on the vendor's retention and access controls, so delete old submissions you no longer need.
Sources: Barrie Police on X (Oct 23) · St. Thomas Police on X (Oct 23) · CTV Ottawa (Oct 23) · Global Winnipeg (Oct 23) · Global News Toronto (Oct 23)