The British Columbia government has been tight-lipped about details about an apparent cyberattack affecting its digital networks.
The state said late Wednesday that it had identified a “high-level cybersecurity incident involving government networks.”
Public Safety Minister Mike Farnworth said Thursday that cybersecurity experts have yet to find evidence that sensitive information such as medical records has been accessed or compromised.
“Their number one priority is to ensure the integrity of the system, to protect the system, to protect the information, and that's what they've been doing,” Farnworth said.
The province is working with Cybersecurity Canada and police to investigate the incident, which Farnworth confirmed was not a ransomware attack.
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Farnworth also could not say who the attacker was.
But authorities did not say exactly when the attack occurred, with Farnworth telling reporters only that it had been identified “recently.”
“It's hard to go out right away and tell people that. It's the moment you do it. If you don't protect everything, if you don't understand what happened, if you don't protect your system against outside interference, “It makes us even more vulnerable,” he said. He said.
Farnworth said security upgrades to the state's networks in 2022 allowed authorities to detect when the attempt occurred.
BC United Official Opposition Leader Kevin Falcon said the government has an obligation to provide the public with more detailed information.
He pointed to the recent London Drugs cybersecurity incident and noted that the company provides almost daily updates on the situation.
“We know they've known this was a problem for at least eight days,” Falcon said.
“And last night, they quietly released a statement during a Canucks playoff hockey game. This is part of their pattern of always being secretive and not being transparent about things.”
The province said in a media release Wednesday that it has notified B.C.'s Information and Privacy Commissioner and will “be as transparent as possible without compromising the investigation.”
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