Kolding Municipality employee fired for accessing 200 citizens’ personal data without authorisation

A municipal employee in Kolding, Denmark, has been dismissed and reported to police after unlawfully accessing the personal details of nearly 200 residents, DR reports. The case has prompted the municipality to review its internal procedures.

The former employee, who worked in Kolding Municipality’s corporate finance department, accessed names, addresses, and personal identification numbers without legitimate cause. The breach was discovered accidentally when a citizen requested access to their records, revealing unauthorised access.

“The employee had improperly viewed information about a person they had no professional reason to access,” said John Burchardt, the municipality’s finance director. Further investigation uncovered nearly 200 similar cases.

While the municipality has notified all affected individuals and advised them to monitor for potential misuse—such as unauthorised bank activity—Burchardt stated there is “no significant evidence” the data has been exploited. “Our concern about misuse isn’t overwhelming, but we’ve urged people to check their accounts as a precaution,” he said.

Though the incident was uncovered by chance, Burchardt maintained that unauthorised access is rare. However, the municipality may now increase random checks on employee data searches. “We’re examining our procedures,” he said, noting that discussions on potential changes—such as expanding audit samples—are ongoing.