4 septembre 2020 | Local, C4ISR, Sécurité
David Pugliese
Students and staff at the Royal Military College won't know until mid-September whether their personal information has been compromised, more than two months after a cyber attack forced the shutdown of the organization's computers.
An extensive review of information contained on the college's computer-based academic network is underway, according to the Department of National Defence.
That network is used for general administration, student communications and research.
“Initial indications are the extent of the compromise appears limited primarily to non-classified administrative information and correspondence,” DND spokeswoman Christina Kasper said in an email. “When the review is complete, a general statement based on findings will be shared with all network users regarding the extent of the compromise.”
The cyber attack took place July 3.
“If, during the course of the assessment, it is determined any personally identifiable information was compromised, individual network users who were found to be at risk will be immediately and directly contacted by the chain of command,” Kasper added.
She noted that the office of the Privacy Commissioner was notified about the incident at the college in Kingston, Ont.
RMC professors have been told not to access or retrieve their files on college computers, even with a USB stick. Staff and students have also been trying since July 3 to find out if their personal data has been compromised.
But an email summary of an Aug. 25 town hall that took place to discuss the computer attack acknowledged very little information is being provided by the college.
“Very few specific concerns were addressed in the town hall other than the presentation of the computer network issues that transpired and the way ahead for re-implementation of the RMC network,” the email to staff noted. “Personal data loss was mentioned as a possibility that had been brought up in the media. There is currently an ongoing investigation with the goal to determine define what may have transpired and to inform any that may be affected. No other details were provided.”
Global News reported Aug. 18 that what appears to be data from the Royal Military College was leaked on the dark web. Many of the files appear to include student progress reports, acceptance letters, as well as a myriad of financial documents like tax receipts and budgets for various departments, Global News noted.
DND has not confirmed whether the information on the dark web came from the college's computers.
The college's academic computer system is separate from the operational computers used by DND and the Canadian Forces and corporate networks were not affected by the attack.
“All early indications suggest this incident resulted from a mass phishing campaign,” said DND spokeswoman Jessica Lamirande. “This incident has not affected any classified systems or classified research at the Royal Military College.”
The RCMP's National Cyber Crimes unit is investigating.
Lamirande said the Royal Military College expects its fall academic term to begin as scheduled on Sept. 8.
29 août 2023 | Local, Aérospatial
The Department of National Defence’s Airworthiness Investigative Authority has issued the preliminary report From the Investigator in relation to the CH-147F Chinook accident on June 20, 2023.
7 janvier 2019 | Local, Naval, Sécurité
THERESA McGUIRE, © 2018 FrontLine (Vol 15, No 6) The Arctic Ocean is so beautiful in the late summer and early fall, but can be deathly cold & unpredictable. Having a well-prepared, self-sufficient team is critical when it comes to marine safety and emergency response. We had sailed from the port of St John's, Newfoundland on August 21st, and were heading toward Resolute, Nunavut, on the six-deck, Canadian Coast Guard Ship (CCGS) Henry Larsen, high-endurance, multi-tasked icebreaker. Onboard as the Health Officer, I was looking forward to another safe Arctic mission on the 100-metre-long ship. Henry Larsen is well equipped with additional transportation equipment and emergency vessels that included a Bell 429 helicopter, two new lifeboats, two hydrographic survey boats, a Zodiac Fast Rescue Craft, a metal barge for scientific technical work, and a variety of inflatable rafts. In addition to assisting in scientific research, the Canadian Coast Guard's expanded mandate includes marine SAR (search and rescue), icebreaking, supporting and maintaining marine communications and navigation, and even responding to environmental pollution. We are always ready for the wide range of search and rescue calls, which can come from vessels in distress or downed aircraft. If you're working on a Coast Guard vessel, you'd better be comfortable working in unusual environments and working independently – and that's also true for any health professionals on board. As a former army nurse and now occupational health nurse specializing in workplace health and safety, I enjoy these missions immensely with a full scope of nursing practice and a supportive crew to assist if needed. Sick bay on the Larsen is also well equipped, with oxygen, emergency airways and medications, sutures, defibrillator and ECG, and trauma and mass casualty kits all at the ready. Full article: https://defence.frontline.online/article/2018/6/10844-Sailing-into-the-Ice
25 avril 2019 | Local, Aérospatial
DAVID PUGLIESE, OTTAWA CITIZEN The Department of National Defence has updated details about its key ongoing defence procurements. I have written an article on that update which can be viewed at the National Post website: https://nationalpost.com/news/government-expects-to-award-contract-for-new-fighter-jet-fleet-in-2022-but-admits-it-could-face-delays The article notes the DND warning about issues that could affect the proposed purchase of a fleet of uninhabited aerial vehicles, commonly referred to as drones. The DND update warned that there might not be enough procurement staff with the required expertise to move that program forward on schedule. The department hopes to deal with the problem by hiring contractors. A draft invitation to qualify for that project was released April 5 and a contact is expected to be awarded in 2022, the update pointed out. The lack of staff has been an ongoing issue for the UAV program but in other ways. In May 2010 I reported The Canadian Force's plan to buy pilotless aircraft to conduct surveillance off the country's coasts, in the Arctic and on overseas missions had fallen behind schedule because the military doesn't have enough people to fly the drones. While the UAVs don't carry pilots, they still require an operator on the ground to fly the craft. Staff are also needed to maintain the equipment and to prepare them for flight. But at the time the air force was having difficulty finding enough people for a new unit that would be needed to operate the UAVs. Then called the Joint UAV Surveillance and Target Acquisition System or JUSTAS, there had been a number of plans for the acquisition. One of the earlier ones involved a request for proposals from industry to be issued by the end of 2009 and a contract signed in 2010. The first of the UAVs would have arrived by February 2012. That obviously didn't happen. A reworked plan called for the delivery of the UAVs in 2014, with full operating capability in 2017. That didn't happen. The project is now named, RPAS, for Remotely Piloted Aircraft System. The latest plan calls for a contract to be awarded in 2022-2023 with full capability – an armed drone fleet – in place by 2029-2030. https://ottawacitizen.com/news/national/defence-watch/lack-of-expert-procurement-staff-could-hinder-canadian-forces-drone-purchase