Transit commission offers three years of credit protection to those impacted by identity theft
The personal information of up to 25,000 TTC employees could have been stolen in an Oct. 29 cybersecurity incident, according to the Toronto Transit Commission
This information may include the names, addresses and social insurance numbers (SINs) of workers both past and present, including pensioners.
In September, a TTC employee’s dismissal for participating in a benefits fraud scheme was upheld by the Ontario Superior Court of Justice.
“While we do not have evidence that any of this information has been misused, we are taking steps to ensure those who may be impacted are protected from things like identity theft. We are doing this by offering three years of credit protection through TransUnion,” says Rick Leary, TTC CEO.
“This is being done both out of an abundance of caution and because it’s the right thing to do. In the coming days we will be reaching out to these potentially affected individuals to advise them of next steps.”
In August, the commission announced COVID-19 vaccinations would be mandatory for all TTC employees, contractors and students in response to the increase in evidence around the transmissibility of the Delta variant and based on the recent actions taken by the City of Toronto.
Employee support
The TTC says it is notifying individuals who may have been affected and will be providing credit monitoring and identify theft protection to them as appropriate.
The TTC is sharing updated information, including supports for employees, at a dedicated website. Employees, former employees and pensioners can also call a dedicated employee hotline for assistance.
“It is not lost on me that organizations like ours are entrusted with significant amounts of personal information and it is essential that we do our best to protect it,” says Leary.
“The fact that in the past year there have been nearly 700 similar cyber security incidents involving public and private sector organizations in Canada is indicative of just how pervasive they really are.”
While cyber crime is rampant these days, nearly two in five working Canadians say they don't receive any cybersecurity training at work, according to a survey of 937 workers by ISA Cybersecurity.
