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In a recent disclosure, the Canadian government has revealed a data breach resulting from hacks on contractors, impacting Brookfield Global Relocation Services (BGRS) and SIRVA Worldwide Relocation & Moving Services. These companies provide location services to government workers, and the breach has exposed sensitive information of an undisclosed number of employees. The breaches occurred on October 19 and have prompted the government to take immediate action to address the incident.
The breached information involves data held by the companies about current and former employees, members of the Canadian Armed Forces, and Royal Canadian Mounted Police personnel. While specific details about impacted individuals are yet to be disclosed, preliminary information suggests that data dating as far back as 1999 may be compromised. This includes personal and financial information provided to the companies by employees.
The LockBit ransomware group has claimed responsibility for breaching SIRVA's systems, leaking what appears to be archives containing 1.5TB of stolen documents.
Upon discovering the breach, the government has taken swift action, reporting the incident to the Canadian Centre for Cyber Security, the Office of the Privacy Commissioner, and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP). A comprehensive assessment of the breach and its impacts is underway, and the government is not waiting for the outcomes of the analysis. Instead, it is adopting a proactive, precautionary approach to support those potentially affected.
The Government of Canada has outlined a series of measures to mitigate the impact of the breach:
Support Services:
Credit monitoring and reissuing valid passports will be provided to current and former members of the public service, RCMP, and the Canadian Armed Forces who have relocated with BGRS or SIRVA Canada over the last 24 years.
Ongoing Monitoring and Collaboration:
Regular meetings with BGRS and SIRVA Canada will be conducted to monitor progress on the issue until a full assessment of the breach and its impacts is achieved.
Verification of Vulnerability Mitigation:
Work is underway to verify that any vulnerabilities contributing to the situation have been addressed by BGRS and SIRVA Canada.
While the assessment is ongoing, the government advises anyone who may be affected to take precautionary measures to safeguard financial and personal information online. Recommendations include updating login credentials, enabling multi-factor authentication, and monitoring financial and personal online accounts for unusual activity.
LockBit is a ransomware-as-a-service (RaaS) operator with a history spanning more than four years and a track record of targeting organizations globally. It has been active in extorting funds, with the US Government revealing that the group has extorted around US$91 million since 2020. The group has been particularly active in 2022, earning the title of the most active global ransomware group and RaaS provider.
As the Canadian government takes proactive steps to address the data breach, it emphasizes collaboration with affected individuals and ongoing efforts to secure vulnerabilities in collaboration with the involved companies.
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