Privacy commissioner opens investigation into Crime Stoppers data breach
The federal office is examining whether Navigate360, the U.S. firm that runs the Crime Stoppers tip platform, had adequate safeguards in place when it was hacked in March.
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Canada's privacy commissioner, Philippe Dufresne, has launched an investigation into the data breach at Crime Stoppers. The office's statement, issued Tuesday, focuses on Navigate360, the third-party company that manages the Crime Stoppers platform.
The investigation will examine the security safeguards Navigate360 had in place at the time of the breach, to determine its compliance with Canada's federal private-sector privacy law. The office said it has contacted Crime Stoppers programs offering "expertise and guidance" on responding to the breach, and has also contacted Navigate360. The source does not say whether the company has responded.
The breach happened in March, when Navigate360 was hacked. The company first publicly acknowledged it on Friday, seven months later, and confirmed it last week. It has opened its own investigation and says it has taken "mitigation measures" and "implemented additional and enhanced safeguards" with the help of another cybersecurity firm.
Several police services paused the public tip line in response. Ontario forces, including several in the Greater Toronto Area, temporarily stopped directing calls to Crime Stoppers. In Manitoba, at least two departments, including Winnipeg, said they would stop taking tips through the program while the incident is reviewed. Saskatchewan Crime Stoppers told the public to avoid sending tips through its platform, saying the pause is temporary.
HighOnCity reported on the breach earlier. A CBC investigation found more than 1.5 million tips submitted to Canadian Crime Stoppers programs over the last 25 years were exposed. No timeline has been given for the privacy investigation's completion.
