Major GTA Transit Company Targeted in North Korea Cyber Attack

In news you definitely don’t hear every day, it appears that massive Ontario transit company Metrolinx successfully thwarted a cyber attack carried out by North Korean hackers.

A recent CTV news article reports that a team of counter (or “ethical”) hackers at the provincial transit agency detected and addressed malware before any damage was done.

In unsettling news, however, it appears the team determined that the attack originated in North Korea and was routed through a service in Russia.

Metrolinx says customer data was not breached.

“At no time was customer privacy (including any personal data) ever breached nor safety compromised,” wrote Vanessa Barrasa, a spokesperson with Metrolinx, in an email to inSauga.com. “We took immediate action to protect our customers and our services. We are continuing to monitor.”

 Barassa said that, due to security, Metrolinx cannot discuss any further details.

After news of the attempted attack broke on Jan. 23, Metrolinx spokesperson Anne Marie Aikins took to Twitter to reassure transit users that their information was safe and that the aforementioned ethical hackers ensured the company and its customers was protected.

No customer info breached nor was safety ever compromised. Ethical hackers ensured we are protected. https://t.co/hbuggHo0Nf

— Anne Marie Aikins (@femwriter) January 23, 2018

Having a little fun with the bizarre situation, Aikins took to Twitter earlier today to share a picture of a pigeon in a GO Train station with the hashtag #cybirdattack.

Pigeon on the GO #cybirdattack pic.twitter.com/DfcqXuJ1uI

— Anne Marie Aikins (@femwriter) January 24, 2018

It appears that neither a wild bird nor North Korea can scare Presto users today.