‘Under threat’ — Windsor MP, engineers call for ’emergency’ action to fight cybercrime

The “cyberwar” is upon us. 

A national advocacy group has joined forces with Windsor West MP Brian Masse — whose riding is in a region repeatedly targeted by cyberattacks — in demanding federal government action to fight the growing menace. 

Masse and the not-for-profit corporation Engineers for the Profession have launched a petition calling for an emergency First Ministers’ Conference “to tackle the rising threats of cyberattacks and the challenges posed by artificial intelligence (AI).”  

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“Canadians are being attacked every day. Thousands of attacks every day,” Peter DeVita, president of the non-partisan Engineers for the Profession, told the Windsor Star.

“It is one that most people recognize as being a very dangerous situation,” he said.”We’re beating the drums, saying, ‘Politicians, you’ve got to pay attention. We’re in trouble here.’” 

The petition, which states “cyberwar is real, and AI military weapons are now being deployed,” notes that critical infrastructure and institutions from medical systems to municipalities have come under attack across Canada. 

The Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre received reports of about $569 million worth of fraud last year, but it estimates only five to 10 per cent of crimes are reported.  

“This is organized crime,” said Masse, who is the NDP’s opposition critic for science, industry, and innovation. “People feel bad about being susceptible to cybercrime and fraud.

“We need to get rid of the stigma. Not everybody wants to report. People feel bad about being exploited. But they shouldn’t. It knows no age, it knows no boundary when it comes to your background.” 

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Windsor and Essex County have not been immune.  

Multiple area car dealerships reverted to closing deals with pen and paper in June following cyberattacks against the U.S. company that provides their software systems.   

Last October, hackers stole patient data from five hospitals, including Windsor Regional Hospital, Hotel-Dieu Grace Healthcare, and Leamington’s Erie Shores HealthCare, then held the personal information for ransom, by targeting third-party agency Transform Shared Service Organization. The hospitals did not pay the ransom.   

Hackers also hit the University of Windsor in June 2022. Due to the university’s secrecy on the issue, it is unknown if the university paid a ransom or how many students and staff might have been affected.  

The Liberal government has a proposed cybersecurity bill working its way through the legislative process, but Masse said the legislation, introduced in June 2022, is taking too long.  

“Cyberattacks are increasingly severe, with Canada being notably vulnerable,” Masse told the Star. “Without a robust strategy, Canadians’ privacy, ability to travel and communicate with one another is under threat.” 

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The petition urges Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to strike a “high-level meeting” to develop strategies, and emphasizes a need for federal and provincial collaboration to protect Canadians. 

“Technology is the future,” DeVita told the Star. “Nations that do not keep up with technology have no future. It’s a big deal.

“We need the Canadian leaders to wake up and really take on the idea of technology strategy, both federally and provincially.” 

In the call for action, Masse cited a report from Canada’s auditor general in June stating that agencies tasked with fighting cybercrime are under-equipped, under-resourced, and uncoordinated.  

Auditor General Karen Hogan wrote that the various agencies, including the RCMP, Communications Security Establishment Canada (CSE), CRTC, and the Ministry of Public Safety, don’t communicate with each other.  

Some agencies didn’t investigate many incidents because the crimes fell outside of their mandates, but never told the complainant or forwarded the report to the proper place, according to the report.  

“We found breakdowns in response, coordination, enforcement, tracking, and analysis between and across the organizations responsible for protecting Canadians from cybercrime,” Hogan wrote.

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The report also estimated that “almost one third of positions across all teams were vacant.  

“We need somewhere between 25,000 to 75,000 practitioners in this field,” said DeVita. “We need the government, federally and provincially, to start funding the education of these things.

“They need to put money into colleges and universities to really focus on this area. When you put all those things together, you come to the same conclusion that we came to for this petition.

“Canada is in trouble.” 

The petition is available at brianmasse.ca. 

twilhelm@postmedia.com

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