5 things to know for Friday, September 18, 2020

TORONTO — Canada has surpassed 140,000 total cases of COVID-19, with 9,200 associated deaths. Here's what else you need to know to start your day.

1. CRA cyberattacks: In a major update on a series of credential-stuffing attacks on government websites including the Canada Revenue Agency, the country's top information officer now says that "suspicious activities" have been found on 48,500 CRA user accounts.

2. Second shutdown: As COVID-19 cases begin to rise again, Canadian politicians and health officials are warning that parts of the country may soon enter a second shutdown. But experts say it won't look like Canada's first go-round back in March.

3. Children's health: Parents and children's health advocates worry that the thousands of delayed or cancelled pediatric procedures due to COVID-19 will have a permanent impact on Canadian children.

4. New COVID-19 test: B.C.'s top health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry announced Thursday researchers have developed a new method of testing that's non-invasive and can be done without the assistance of a health care professional.

5. Four eyes: Researchers in China have observed a curious link in one of the more specific COVID-19 studies to come out of this pandemic: hospitalized coronavirus patients were less likely to wear glasses than the average population.

One more thing…

Extreme weather: A new satellite image from NASA shows the West Coast of the U.S. and parts of Canada covered in smoke from growing wildfires while Hurricane Sally makes landfall in the Gulf Coast and several other hurricanes converge in the Atlantic Ocean.