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ELORA ― Tourists are in the clear when it comes to paying for parking in Elora for the time being.
In a statement to EloraFergusToday at a Centre Wellington council meeting on Monday afternoon, CAO Dan Wilson said the township doesn’t know when its paid parking program is anticipated to come back online.
This follows the township temporarily suspending its paid parking program, including penalty notice payments, last Wednesday, while it works with its service provider to investigate and resolve the issue.
When asked whether the township’s system was hacked, Wilson said he couldn’t confirm outside of what has already been released to the public.
A notice on the township’s website says paid parking and parking ticket processing are currently unavailable while the township addresses a “technical issue” affecting the system.
As verified by reporters at EloraFergusToday, anyone who clicked the penalty notice at approximately 6:45 p.m. last Wednesday evening was redirected from the township’s penalty notice payment website to various websites, including Ali Express, porn and other adult content.
Several residents observed township staff duct taping garbage bags to cover the paid parking kiosks and QR codes throughout the day, which are still in place.
“Parking fees are temporarily waived,” reads a sign posted on a parking kiosk outside of the township’s municipal office. “All posted time limits and parking bylaw regulations remain in effect.”
A previous media advisory from the township confirmed they became aware of an issue involving links from its paid parking system just after 3 p.m. last Wednesday and there is no evidence that any personal information, payment details, or financial data have been compromised.
Isabel Buckmaster is the Local Journalism Initiative reporter for GuelphToday. LJI is a federally-funded program.
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