DEVELOPING Latest updates on the major wildfires burning in Canada
The 2024 wildfire season has begun, and it's shaping up to follow last year's unprecedented destruction in kind, with thousands of square kilometres already consumed.
State-sponsored actors targeted security devices used by governments around the world, according to technology firm Cisco Systems, which said the network devices are coveted intrusion points by spies.
In a blog post Wednesday, Cisco named it "ArcaneDoor," and described the activity as an espionage-focused campaign carried out by "state-sponsored actors targeting perimeter network devices from multiple vendors." It also said it found victims globally, all of which involved government networks.
Cisco and the cybersecurity agencies of Canada, Australia and the United Kingdom are urging customers to patch devices quickly.
In a joint, separate advisory, the Canadian Centre for Cyber Security, Australian Signals Directorate's Australian Cyber Security Centre and the UK's National Cyber Security Centre said they've been monitoring malicious cyber activity since early 2024 that targets virtual private network services — known as VPNS — used by governments and critical infrastructure globally.
VPNs offer a private tunnel that lets workers log into office networks from home, among other uses.
"The capabilities are indicative of espionage conducted by a well-resourced and sophisticated state-sponsored actor," the advisory said.
The agencies noted the campaign was sophisticated and used "multiple layers of novel techniques.
Canada's Communications Security Establishment (CSE), the government agency responsible for information security, told CTV News it was too early to determine which, if any, state was behind the attack.
"It is important that Canada and its partners defend against all threats, whether attributed or not," a spokesperson wrote.
Claudiu Popa, CEO of Datarisk Canada, said the Canadian government has historically been a consumer of Cisco and pointed out how the company is one of the largest providers of network equipment.
"It's a huge concern for not just Canada, but any country around the world and their governments," Popa said, adding the attackers don't appear to be on a mission to use ransomware or cyber extortion.
"The attackers are specifically looking for information," he said.
According to Cisco, a customer first alerted the company of a possible threat in early 2024 but its investigation discovered "actor-controlled infrastructure" dating back to early November 2023, and most activity took place between December 2023 and early January 2024. Cisco found methods were being tested as early July 2023.
Calvin Engen, chief technology officer of F12.net, said every Cisco ASA (Adaptive Security Appliance) device is compromised. Despite issuing patches to protect against it, an actor may have already gained access to the device, Engen said.
"They could possibly have what's called a 'backdoor' that could allow them to stay within their organization. So, it's very paramount for all organizations that have these devices to properly go through and validate that they don't have a persistent threat actor in their environment," he said.
Canada's privacy commissioner is investigating a data breach at Global Affairs Canada involving a cyberattack on an internal network reported earlier in 2024.
Personal information of users, including employees, was compromised when unauthorized individuals accessed the department's virtual private networks.
CTV News reached out to Global Affairs Canada to ask whether it was affected by the Cisco attack.
"The Government of Canada deals with ongoing and persistent cyber risks and threats every day and takes appropriate measures to protect its systems and mitigate against these threats," a spokesperson told CTV News in an email.
"Given its profile, Global Affairs Canada has very proactive security monitoring in place, and takes cyber security and such incidents very seriously," the spokesperson continued, adding the agency isn't able to comment further due to "operational reasons."
"I think for Canadians, the most interesting thing… is will we ever learn what country was behind this particular attack? And that will tell us something," Beauceron Security CEO David Shipley said. "And whether or not the government would… ever formally attribute this attack will tell us something else. These are all really complicated things."
The tech company released software updates to address the vulnerabilities that were exploited, "along with clear guidance to enable customers to detect potential compromise, upgrade, and restore integrity to compromised devices running ASA or FTD (Firepower Threat Defence) software," a Cisco spokesperson told CTV News.
The spokesperson said users can be assured that the company has a history of earning customers' trust through engagement and transparency when facing issues with its products.
The 2024 wildfire season has begun, and it's shaping up to follow last year's unprecedented destruction in kind, with thousands of square kilometres already consumed.
Veteran TSN broadcaster Darren 'Dutch' Dutchyshen, one of Canada’s best-known sports journalists, has died. He was 57. His family says 'he passed as he was surrounded by his closest loved ones.'
A ‘lifetime of abuse’ led Dallas Ly to snap and repeatedly stab his mother inside their Leslieville apartment in 2022 but he never intended to kill her, his defence lawyers argued during at his murder trial in Toronto on Thursday.
A burgeoning track star says his dream of going to the Olympics is being derailed by a deportation order after Immigration officials rejected his family’s claim for asylum
A father has been charged with second-degree murder in the stabbing death of his 34-year-old daughter in southern Quebec.
A medical examiner says a Massachusetts teen who participated in a spicy tortilla chip challenge died from ingesting a substance 'with a high capsaicin concentration.'
A Montreal father who kidnapped his daughter who has autism and lied to police when they asked where she was should serve three years in prison, a Crown prosecutor said.
The province’s health minister and solicitor general are urging Toronto to rescind its request to decriminalize simple possession of small amounts of drugs for personal use, calling the proposal 'misguided' and 'disastrous.'
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says he has "issues" with the Progressive Conservative government of New Brunswick.
A Starbucks fan — whose name is Winter — is visiting Canada on a purposeful journey that began with a random idea at one of the coffee chain's stores in Texas.
Members of Piapot First Nation, students from the University of Winnipeg and various other professionals are learning new techniques that will hopefully be used for ground searches of potential unmarked grave sites in the future.
ALS patient Mathew Brown said he’s hopeful for future ALS patients after news this week of research at Western University of a potential cure for ALS.
When Adam Kirschner wrote 'Slap Shot,' he never imagined the song would be embraced by his favourite team.
A team is ready to help an entangled North Atlantic right whale in the Gulf of St. Lawrence.
A $200 reward is being offered by a North Vancouver family for the safe return of their beloved chicken, Snowflake.
Two daughters and a mother were reunited online 40 years later thanks to a DNA kit and a Zoom connection despite living on three separate continents and speaking different languages.
Mother's Day can be a difficult occasion for those who have lost or are estranged from their mom.
YES Theatre Young Company opened its acclaimed kids’ show, One Small Step, at Sudbury Theatre Centre on Saturday.