The facts
The authority said 16,900 mainland residents applying for two international examinations were affected, with names, dates of birth and email addresses among the exposed data. [1][2][3]
The authority said it discovered the incident on 29 October and reported it to police and the Office of the Privacy Commissioner for Personal Data. [1][2]
As of the authority’s statement, there was no evidence that HKDSE or other examinations had been affected. [1][2][3]
The authority said relevant exam organisers had been notified and it was arranging to contact affected applicants. [1][2][3]
Relevant context
The Standard reported the compromised platform supported selected international assessments and that the HKDSE and most other qualifications use separate platforms. [3]
Still unconfirmed
- The authority had not identified the cause, exposure period or whether additional records were accessed in the reports reviewed.
- The official HKEAA notice was listed on its website, but the direct page was access-restricted in the viewer; the incident scope is corroborated by RTHK and The Standard.
Sources
References support the numbered facts above. Source checks: 2 Nov 2026, 02:15 UTC.
RTHK and The Standard independently report the Authority’s 16,900-person figure and the limited international-exam scope. The official HKEAA site lists a response notice, but the direct page was restricted in the viewer. No broader compromise is asserted.
- HKEAA follows up on cybersecurity incident involving international examinations
Hong Kong Examinations and Assessment Authority · Primary source · 30 Oct 2026
The authority’s current notice was visible in its official site search result; direct access to the site was restricted in the page viewer.
- HKEAA reports international exam data leak
RTHK · Reporting · 31 Oct 2026
Full article opened; it attributes the count, discovery date, exposed fields and no-evidence caveat to the authority.
- Data of nearly 17,000 mainland exam candidates leaked in HKEAA cybersecurity breach
The Standard · Reporting · 31 Oct 2026
Independent local report opened; it confirms affected data fields, affected exams and the separate HKDSE platform.