High Court orders deletion of data stolen from neighbourhood community notice board NZ Lawyer
p
Case notes information taken has value to those interested in identity fraud
ppNew Zealands High Court saw a clear prima facie case that the use dissemination or mere retention of data stolen from a neighbourhood community notice board would breach a duty of confidence owed to the platform operator and verified members ppNeighbourly Limited the applicant in Neighbourly Limited v Unknown Defendants 2026 NZHC 1 hosts an online platform for neighbours to connect share information discuss issues trade items and organise events ppVerified members should give Neighbourly as the platform operator a range of personal information Neighbourly profiles include members posts real names and addresses generally viewable by fellow verified members within the neighbourhood ppMembers can opt to hide their street number post messages to restricted groups or neighbourhoods or send messages to individual members Neighbourly seeks to hold the members information confidentially ppOn 1 January 2026 Neighbourly learned that someone had listed for sale on the dark web a database of members information including their contact details platform interactions and direct messages ppNeighbourly temporarily shut down its platform to conduct an investigation which revealed a system vulnerability and an occasion involving the download of 150 GB of data from its system Neighbourly tackled the vulnerability and reopened its platform ppNeighbourlys counsel confirmed that it had notified its members the Office of the Privacy Commissioner and the National Cyber Security Centre of the data security breach ppOn 5 January 2026 Neighbourly brought a without notice application seeking orders requiring unknown defendants to delete and otherwise refrain from dealing with data stolen from its platform ppThe High Court of New Zealand granted Neighbourlys application and deemed it appropriate to grant its requested orders ppThe court determined that this case met the threshold for interim relief on a without notice basis The court held that the possibility of the stolen datas imminent and anonymous sale justified urgently handling Neighbourlys application without notice ppThe case noted that the downloaded data would be valuable to anyone interested in engaging in identityrelated fraud ppThe court explained that the temporarily unknown identity of suitable defendants would not impede granting the application because the issued orders terms could address anyone who might possess obtain or control the stolen data ppThe court concluded that the balance of convenience squarely favoured preventing the stolen datas access use or dissemination pp
wrapperdetailbody h1wrapperdetailbody h1fontsize36pxwrapperdetailbody h2wrapperdetailbody h2fontsize32pxwrapperdetailbody h3wrapperdetailbody h3fontsize28pxwrapperdetailbody h4wrapperdetailbody h4fontsize24pxwrapperdetailbody h5wrapperdetailbody h5fontsize22pxwrapperdetailbody h6wrapperdetailbody h6fontsize22px
pp
Subscribe to our FREE newsletter service and well keep you uptodate with the latest breaking news cutting edge opinion and expert analysis affecting both your business and the industry as whole
pp
Please enter your email address below and click on Sign Up for daily newsletters from NZ Lawyer
p
Case notes information taken has value to those interested in identity fraud
ppNew Zealands High Court saw a clear prima facie case that the use dissemination or mere retention of data stolen from a neighbourhood community notice board would breach a duty of confidence owed to the platform operator and verified members ppNeighbourly Limited the applicant in Neighbourly Limited v Unknown Defendants 2026 NZHC 1 hosts an online platform for neighbours to connect share information discuss issues trade items and organise events ppVerified members should give Neighbourly as the platform operator a range of personal information Neighbourly profiles include members posts real names and addresses generally viewable by fellow verified members within the neighbourhood ppMembers can opt to hide their street number post messages to restricted groups or neighbourhoods or send messages to individual members Neighbourly seeks to hold the members information confidentially ppOn 1 January 2026 Neighbourly learned that someone had listed for sale on the dark web a database of members information including their contact details platform interactions and direct messages ppNeighbourly temporarily shut down its platform to conduct an investigation which revealed a system vulnerability and an occasion involving the download of 150 GB of data from its system Neighbourly tackled the vulnerability and reopened its platform ppNeighbourlys counsel confirmed that it had notified its members the Office of the Privacy Commissioner and the National Cyber Security Centre of the data security breach ppOn 5 January 2026 Neighbourly brought a without notice application seeking orders requiring unknown defendants to delete and otherwise refrain from dealing with data stolen from its platform ppThe High Court of New Zealand granted Neighbourlys application and deemed it appropriate to grant its requested orders ppThe court determined that this case met the threshold for interim relief on a without notice basis The court held that the possibility of the stolen datas imminent and anonymous sale justified urgently handling Neighbourlys application without notice ppThe case noted that the downloaded data would be valuable to anyone interested in engaging in identityrelated fraud ppThe court explained that the temporarily unknown identity of suitable defendants would not impede granting the application because the issued orders terms could address anyone who might possess obtain or control the stolen data ppThe court concluded that the balance of convenience squarely favoured preventing the stolen datas access use or dissemination pp
wrapperdetailbody h1wrapperdetailbody h1fontsize36pxwrapperdetailbody h2wrapperdetailbody h2fontsize32pxwrapperdetailbody h3wrapperdetailbody h3fontsize28pxwrapperdetailbody h4wrapperdetailbody h4fontsize24pxwrapperdetailbody h5wrapperdetailbody h5fontsize22pxwrapperdetailbody h6wrapperdetailbody h6fontsize22px
pp
Subscribe to our FREE newsletter service and well keep you uptodate with the latest breaking news cutting edge opinion and expert analysis affecting both your business and the industry as whole
pp
Please enter your email address below and click on Sign Up for daily newsletters from NZ Lawyer
p
