Buried in Metadata: Streaming Service Fined for Privacy Violations
The Challenge
In 2025, HearUs, one of Canada’s leading music streaming platforms, was fined by federal regulators after a privacy research group discovered that unencrypted metadata had been publicly accessible through a misconfigured cloud repository. The exposed data included user listening history, device identifiers, and geolocation details. While no direct payment or personal identity information was leaked, the data provided enough behavioral insight to identify individual users based on listening patterns.
The issue stemmed from an outdated analytics system that stored metadata in a temporary environment used by third party developers. The configuration lacked encryption at rest and had been excluded from internal monitoring. Because the environment was considered low risk, no privacy impact assessment had been performed before launch. The oversight went unnoticed for several months until privacy advocates published a report linking the leak to HearUs.
Public reaction was immediate. Users voiced concern about their listening history being exposed, while media outlets questioned the company’s privacy posture. Regulators cited violations of Canada’s Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act for failing to safeguard user data and for lacking transparency in data handling. The organization faced a substantial fine and a deadline to demonstrate compliance improvements within 90 days.
Our Solution
Our team was retained to assist HearUs with incident remediation and compliance reform. The first priority was to secure all storage environments and encrypt metadata repositories both in transit and at rest. We deployed a centralized data governance framework that cataloged every dataset, assigned ownership, and classified sensitivity levels. A new monitoring system was implemented to detect unauthorized access and misconfigurations in real time.
The privacy policy was rewritten to explicitly describe what metadata was collected, how it was used, and under what legal basis. We also supported HearUs in launching a transparency campaign, including public disclosures and user notifications. Vendor contracts were updated to include stronger data protection obligations and mandatory security attestations. The company also committed to conducting annual privacy audits and publishing the results as part of its accountability report.
The Value
HearUs successfully reduced its regulatory fine by demonstrating swift and proactive cooperation. Subscriber confidence was preserved through open communication and visible improvements to security. The new metadata governance framework became an internal benchmark, improving operational consistency and reducing compliance risk. The company also avoided approximately one hundred and eighty thousand dollars in additional legal and subscriber churn costs.
Implementation Roadmap
1. Encrypt all user metadata and close unauthorized public access points.
2. Revise and publish an updated privacy policy reflecting actual data practices.
3. Deploy automated monitoring tools for storage and access misconfigurations.
4. Audit third party data handling and update vendor contracts with compliance clauses.
5. Train all staff responsible for data management on consent and metadata governance.
