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Toronto
Data Breach Ransomware Security Sensitive data Toronto

Cyberattack on TDSB Exposes Student Data, Sparks Parental Concerns


 

In June 2024, the Toronto District School Board (TDSB), Canada's largest school board, suffered a ransomware attack that compromised the personal information of its students. The incident was first disclosed to the public on June 12, when the TDSB announced that an unauthorised party had accessed one of their technology testing servers. This server, utilised by the board’s IT technicians to test new software, contained sensitive student data from the 2023/2024 academic year.

What Data Was Compromised?

According to an email sent to parents on Thursday, the compromised server held a range of student information. The data accessed during the attack included students' names, school names, grades, TDSB email addresses, student numbers, and dates of birth. While this information was stored in a testing environment rather than a primary database, its exposure is nonetheless concerning, given the potential risks associated with data breaches.

Assessing the Risk

In response to the breach, TDSB officials have been working closely with their cyber security teams and external security partners to assess the situation. As of now, these teams have determined that the risk to students remains low. They have not observed any public disclosure of the compromised data, including on the dark web or other online platforms known for illicit activities. The board has also notified the Privacy Commissioner of Ontario about the potential breach as a precautionary measure.

The news of the cyberattack has sparked concerns among parents, with some feeling that the TDSB’s communication downplayed the seriousness of the incident. Anne Borden, a mother of TDSB students, expressed her dissatisfaction, noting that the board’s response did not instil confidence in their ability to safeguard student information in the future. Borden emphasised the need for the TDSB to prioritise student data security, questioning why crucial resources are allocated to other areas while cybersecurity seemingly takes a backseat.

Ransomware attacks have become an increasing concern for institutions across Toronto, including public organisations. This type of cyberattack involves malicious actors holding data or computer systems hostage until a ransom is paid. Over recent years, several prominent organisations in Toronto, such as the Toronto Public Library, SickKids Hospital, the Toronto Zoo, and the Toronto Transit Commission (TTC), have fallen victim to similar attacks.

The TDSB incident highlights the growing importance of robust cybersecurity measures within educational institutions. As schools increasingly rely on digital tools and platforms, the need to protect sensitive information becomes even more critical. Parents and the community at large are urging the TDSB to take immediate steps to enhance its security protocols and ensure that the personal data of students remains protected.

While the TDSB has stated that the risk to students is currently low, the vulnerability of school systems to cyber threats needs to be kept in check. Moving forward, it is crucial for the TDSB to rebuild trust by implementing stronger security measures and prioritising the safety of student information above all else.



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Toronto
City of Hamilton Computers cyber attack Library Ransomware Toronto

Hamilton Library Struggles to Restore Services After Cyberattack

 




Hamilton Public Library's services have been severely disrupted for three months following a ransomware attack on the City of Hamilton's computer systems. Public computers remain offline at all 23 library branches, and there's no clear timeline for when these services will be restored.


The cyberattack occurred on February 25, forcing the library to shut down various services to prevent further damage. Chief librarian and CEO Paul Takala explained that this was a necessary precaution to ensure the safety of the library's systems. Although some services, like free WiFi, have been restored, the process of building a more secure network to safely reintroduce public computer access is still ongoing.


The uncertainty surrounding the timeline for full restoration is a major concern. "Speculating isn't helpful," said Takala. "We hope it will be soon, but we must be careful and can't make any commitments."


The prolonged outage has had a significant impact on library patrons like Deepthi Jayatunge, who relies on the library's computers for various tasks. Jayatunge, who is studying for a certificate at McMaster University, typically prints lecture materials and uses the library's reliable internet to connect with family in Sri Lanka. The absence of these services has created difficulties, especially for those who do not have alternative access.


Jayatunge, who also works at a Salvation Army emergency shelter, has observed the struggles faced by homeless individuals who depend on the library's computers to search for housing and employment. "Their lives are on hold," he noted.


Prior to the attack, the public heavily relied on library computers, averaging over 750 hours of use per day across all branches in early 2024. This heavy reliance underlines the critical role these services play in the community.


Currently, the library is unable to offer several key services, including public computers, printing, scanning, online holds, self-check kiosks, virtual programming, some Makerspace services, extended access at rural branches, and technical help with devices. However, patrons can still check out books in person, browse the library's website, and access e-books and audiobooks. WiFi remains available at all branches except Ancaster.


The Hamilton library's approach mirrors that of the Toronto Public Library, which experienced a similar cyberattack last year. Toronto faced over four months of disrupted services and chose to rebuild its system rather than pay the ransom demanded by the attackers. Hamilton is taking a similar path, gradually restoring services while enhancing the security of its systems.


Hamilton Mayor Andrea Horwath confirmed that the city did not pay the ransom demanded by the hackers, although she did not disclose the amount. Efforts to restore and rebuild the city's systems are ongoing, but officials have not provided a specific timeline for when normal operations will resume.


As the library works to rebuild, it aims to create a more resilient system that can continue to serve the community during future emergencies, such as power outages or severe weather events. "The library is not only a shelter for people, but also a place where they can contact family to say, 'I'm OK,'" said Takala.


The ongoing disruption of library services surfaces the immense need for secure and resilient public infrastructure to support community needs, especially for those who rely heavily on these services, for studying and otherwise. 



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UHN
Code Grey Cyber Attacks Ransomware Scouts Canada SickKids Toronto Twitter UHN

Digital Systems Fail at Toronto Hospital Network, Triggering a "code grey"

 


Several major Toronto hospitals had their digital systems down on Monday, and they are investigating the cause, following which University Health Network issued a "code grey" to indicate a system failure. 

Gillian Howard, a spokeswoman for UHN, said the hospital has been experiencing outages in its digital systems. There are currently "downtime procedures" in clinical areas, Gillian added. 

In a series of tweets issued later Monday evening, the UHN noted that the network had restored service to most departments across the city. However, there may be some challenges getting to some departments due to the outage. Patients should also be prepared for a delay when they arrive at the hospital on Tuesday morning, according to the tweet.   

"In addition to ensuring the safety and well-being of their patients, the hospital ensures that they give patients updates as soon as they have more information," concluded the tweet. 

There was another outage during the day at UHN, which followed a similar outage at Toronto's Hospital for Sick Children caused by a ransomware attack last month. As part of the response, the children's hospital announced last week that 80 percent of its priority systems had been restored. It had not paid any ransoms to the hackers. 

In the United States, there is a ransomware group called LockBit, which The Federal Bureau of Investigation has called one of the world's most destructive and active criminal organizations. The group apologized for the hack allegedly committed by a member of the group. 

SickKids was offered a decryptor, but the organization said it was not planning to use it and that its technology department was restoring its systems instead. There has also been an incident where Scouts Canada has been a victim of a cyberattack recently on its "MyScouts" database, which is used to manage programs across the country. Scouts Canada announced only a small number of users had been directly affected by the outage on Monday, but the system remains down. 

The cause of the latest outage at UHN hospital is unclear. However, a research firm has found that cyberattacks on Canadian hospitals increased by 20 percent last year. This is according to data compiled in its report. 

According to a study by Check Point Research, three industries were the most affected in 2022: healthcare, finance, and government. There has been a lot of progress in the public sector regarding privacy and cybersecurity, but more needs to be done to reach "cyber maturity" in the public sector. 

It recommended that across the broader public services sector, the province needs to "enhance existing governance structures to facilitate effective cybersecurity risk management."
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User Data
Accellion FTA CISO Data Breach Potential Cyber Breach Toronto User Data

City of Toronto Hit by a Potential Cyber Breach

 

A possible cyber breach from a third-party data transfer software supplier was reported by the City of Toronto on 22nd January 2021. The City took effective measures to halt all the applications that day, while research was promptly initiated by the Chief Information Security Officer of the City to assess the types of data potentially breached. 

The City has documented the infringement to the Commissioner for Information and Privacy of Ontario and had further interacted with everyone whose information might be infringed. Also, additional jurisdictions or organizations in Ontario and across the globe recently reported that this sort of cyber-breach has also affected them. 

The City of Toronto claims that in January, there was a "potential cyber breach" of data on its Accellion FTA file transmission servers that could include individual health details. 

Later, IT World Canada was assured by City workers that Accellion was involved. There had been a problem in the city on January 22nd. A city spokesperson said that the CISO office was examining and released a report only on the 20th of April, on being asked why and how the event had taken until now to be made public – “It takes time to reach any sort of conclusion given the legacy system that was breached, and the extent of investigation required,” the spokesperson said. 

The representative added that they are still investigating exactly how many folk details were revealed. In addition, the city hasn't submitted a ransom application and it is not known either that if a ransom demand has been obtained as a consequence of this violation. 

In its statement, the city said it “took immediate action and shut down access to the software that day, and the city’s chief information security officer immediately launched an investigation to determine the type of data that may have been compromised.” 

In all cases whereby personal health data are affected, the city must notify the IPC. The IPC has been informed since personal health information is potentially accessible. In its attempts to safeguard the privacy and welfare of Toronto people, Toronto has effectively stopped cyber threats regularly. 

In February, cybersecurity agencies across five countries released a global warning to organizations that have transferred their Accellion FTA files after several organizations have admitted that bugs in the program are being compromised at the beginning of this year. Publicly known victims include Shell, the oil supplier, Bombardier, and the pharmaceutical operation of the US retail chain, the Canadian company jet maker.
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