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You Could Be Owed Up to $5,000: The CRA Data Breach Settlement, Explained

  August 21, 2026 If you had a Government of Canada online account back in 2020, it's worth five minutes to check whether you're eligible for a payout. Claims are now open in an $8.7-million federal settlement tied to a wave of 2020 cyberattacks on Canada Revenue Agency and other Government of Canada accounts. If your CRA My Account, My Service Canada Account, or another GCKey-linked account was compromised, you may be entitled to compensation — in some cases, up to $5,000. Here's what happened, who qualifies, and exactly how to file before the deadline. What happened Between June and August 2020, hackers used "credential stuffing" — testing stolen usernames and passwords from other data leaks against government login pages — to break into thousands of Government of Canada online accounts. In some cases, attackers viewed confidential personal and financial information; in others, they used stolen access to file fraudulent claims for pandemic-era benefits like CERB...

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Global Technology Outage Causes Major Disruptions Worldwide

 


A widespread technology outage on July 19, 2024, has caused significant disruptions across various sectors globally. The outage, primarily affecting Microsoft services, grounded flights, knocked banks and hospital systems offline, and took media outlets off the air.

The issue, which was not a result of a cyberattack, stemmed from a faulty update deployed by cybersecurity firm CrowdStrike. This update affected computers running Microsoft Windows, leading to cascading problems in airline communications, banking systems, and media broadcasting.

Airlines in the U.S., Europe, and Asia experienced severe delays as they lost access to check-in and booking services. Banks in South Africa and New Zealand reported outages in their payment systems, while hospitals and doctor’s offices faced challenges with appointment systems. Media outlets in Australia were pushed off air for hours.

Microsoft has been working to reroute impacted traffic to alternate systems to alleviate the issue and has observed a positive trend in service availability. However, the disruptions have highlighted the global dependence on a few key technology providers and the potential vulnerabilities in such a centralized system.

This incident underscores the critical need for robust contingency plans and diversified technology solutions to mitigate the impact of such widespread outages in the future.


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