The data breach at Desjardins Group is thought to be one of the largest ever among Canadian financial institutions, affecting roughly 2.7 million people and 173,000 businesses.

Now, in its aftermath, there’s a warning about fraudulent emails, and a class-action lawsuit is in the works. 

Here’s a breakdown of what went wrong and what’s happening now.

What happened

Officials at Desjardins revealed Thursday an employee improperly collected information about customers and shared it with a third party outside the financial institution, which is the largest federation of credit unions in North America, with outlets across Quebec and Ontario.

The leaked information includes names, addresses, birth dates, social insurance numbers, email addresses and information about transaction habits. Passwords, security questions and personal identification numbers weren’t compromised, according to Desjardins.

The employee, a man who has not been publicly identified, was fired. He was arrested by Laval police but has not been charged.

What are the risks?

Desjardins said it has not seen a spike in fraud cases since the breach.

But important questions remain, says one Montreal-based security expert.

“The first thing we need to find out is where is the information — that wasn’t answered yesterday,” said Claude Sarrazin, who has been watching the case closely. “Who has control over that information?”

Desjardins flagged a suspicious transaction to Laval police last December, and it took several months for the institution to learn the scope of the scheme.

François Dumais, left, an inspector with Laval police, took part in Thursday’s news conference. The police service assisted with an investigation at Desjardins. (Ivanoh Demers/Radio Canada)

In May, police told Desjardins that the personal information of some of its members had been leaked. An internal investigation was then conducted with the help of Laval police.

What Desjardins is doing

Desjardins said extra security measures have been put in place to protect data, such as requiring additional steps to confirm a member’s identity. It is also contacting every member affected by the leak.

“We’re communicating directly with every member who’s been affected to explain what happened and what they can do,” Desjardins said on its website.

On Friday, Desjardins extended its offer to pay for a credit monitoring plan and identity theft insurance for affected members for five years, up from the 12 months announced a day earlier.

A detailed list of what Desjardins is doing about the breach can be found here.

Class action in the works

A proposed class action filed in Quebec Superior Court on Friday alleges the co-operative financial group was negligent in safeguarding its members’ personal and financial information.

The lawsuit argues Desjardins failed to live up to its obligations and owes affected members $300 each, plus punitive damages.

The suit has not yet been certified by a judge — a requirement before it can proceed.

Julie Courchesne, a Desjardins client for more than 35 years, said she’s “very frustrated” by the situation. She said the breach will lead to a feeling of uncertainty about her private information “for the rest of our lives.”

Warnings of fraud

In the aftermath of the data breach, Quebec’s regulator of financial institutions warned that Desjardins members may be the target of fraudulent emails, text messages and telephone calls.

“Fraudsters may be tempted to contact you to extract personal information under the pretext that they are doing so in connection with security measures or updates stemming from the incident,” the Autorités des marchés financiers (AMF) said Friday.

Desjardins is the largest federation of credit unions in North America, with outlets across Quebec and Ontario. (Paul Chiasson/Canadian Press)

The AMF said you should “never reply” to such requests.

“Contrary to what the fraudsters may try to make you believe, such emails and text messages do not come from your financial institution, even if they bear the institution’s logo,” the statement said.

(TLN) In an annual report tabled on June 17, Tourisme Laval, which promotes tourism in the Laval region, said tourist traffic and spending in Laval last year beat expectations in several key sectors of activity.

Hotel rentals up

Among other things, according to the agency, hotels in Laval saw an 82.2 per cent occupancy rate in the past year, which was 1.6 per cent higher than the previous year and the best performance in Quebec for the same period.

According to the report, 1,739,926 tourists visited Laval, which was slight drop from figures in 2017. Laval hosted 206 conventions and trade shows, generating $8.3 million in business for suppliers of services. Tourisme Laval also estimates that 156 million people were reached by the agency through various media.

Local tourism growing

“The tourist landscape in Laval has greatly changed over the course of the last five years and the future looks just as promising,” said outgoing Tourisme Laval president Yves Legault, who presided the agency for the past five years. Yannick Pazzi of Sheraton Laval is taking over Legault’s role on Tourisme Laval’s board of directors.

“The challenges are many, our ambitions are large and our willingness remains unshakable,” said Pazzi. “I am impatient to get started working with all the players in the industry to get Tourisme Laval headed in the direction of fulfilling its mission and its objectives.”

Renata Isopo

People, people, more curious people. At least 200 citizens crammed the June 4^th Laval City Council meeting. The opposition, under David De Cotis’s leadership, invited taxpayers to attend the session in support of Councillor Michel Poissant’s request to freeze municipal taxes for the next two years. Laval sits on $555.2 million surplus, and $42 million retrieved from the financial misdealings of former Mayor Gilles Vaillancourt’s administration.

Booming treasury

According to Poissant, Laval coffers have accumulated excess funds over the years. To him, it demonstrates lack of consideration by the Demers administration for the middle class already among the highest taxed in Canada. “Worrisome indeed,” stated Poissant who jumped the Demers ship, joining Action Laval, last March.

Last month, Poissant moved for a two-year residential tax freeze as of 2020.  At this past week’s meeting, the debate didn’t hit the table until 11:00 pm, since it was arguably declared out of order. Council chair Christiane Yoakim denied comments or questions on the surplus. The issue finally emerged, following the Ordre du Jour, a seemingly endless agenda.  By then, most attendees had left the meeting.

Earlier in the meeting, Councilor De Cotis was asked by a citizen when the tax freeze would take effect. “It should take place today for two years, even four, there’s a way to freeze taxes,” he responded, before the chair cautioned that his time was up, ordering him to sit down.  “Absolutely not,” retorted De Cotis, standing ground, invoking his right to speak as an elected people’s representative. Heated confrontation ensued, tension evident in the crowd.

Indirect returns to taxpayers?

Mayor Demers, in his defense, stated that some accumulated funds are being dispersed among Laval children in different forms.  He did not specify amounts or organizations. He did add that “money is already given back in free transportation for seniors.” Councilor Stéphane Boyer stated, “There must be a tax distinction. $42 million (from Vaillancourt) only comes once, and that goes fast.”

Reference of expenditures was made to roads, parks, street drains, at $400,000.  $45 million for the next ten years was quoted. Councilor Poissant quickly responded, but he too was shot down. “You don’t have the floor, Mr. Poissant, please sit down.”  Poissant’s body language spoke tons.

The opposition persisted, launching a war of words with the chair, with Councilor Paolo Galati joining De Cotis and Poissant in the fray. The heat was on. Demers reminded De Cotis that the budget was examined together.  “What will it cost to resolve all the problems brought here?” the Mayor asked. De Cotis, attempting rebuttal, was again silenced by chairperson Yoakim whose plea amounted to – “Are you trying to make my life difficult?” 

Poissant pointed to financial documents citing figures which would substantiate tax freezing. “Why are you only looking at current accounts?” asked Demers. Councilor and STL (Société de Transport de Laval) president Erik Moras told the mayor there was no mention of a Laval Metro extension. “The project ends in Montreal.” De Cotis added “It isn’t in the plan, not that it isn’t intended.”

Councilor Claude Larochelle proposed an amendment to Poissant’s motion, a one-year freeze for 2019-2020.  “Not a good idea to do it for two years since the budget isn’t known.” Poissant responded that 95% of the budget is always known in advance, giving the Demers administration a lesson in accounting.

The one-year amendment was defeated, as was the two-year motion. Unsurprising to the Opposition, the depleted Demers group which still enjoys a sizeable majority on Council unanimously blocked the tax freeze.

Tempers flare, citizens livid

The June meeting was laced with multiple complaints from various sectors of the Laval citizenry, including council members. At question period, Councilor Galati angrily demanded that the chair apologize for stopping a citizen from repeating a question.  “It’s lack of respect. Apologize to that gentleman,” he shouted. No apology came.

Parent Namouner Rabah complained of discrimination and intimidation by Chomedey Soccer Club against his child who wasn’t allowed to play and wasn’t given an explanation. He told TLN that city hall, aware since last November, has done nothing, his phone calls unreturned. 

Action Laval member and candidate Vivianne Monette pointed out that Equinoxe Levesque’s zoning isn’t respected. “There are urgent issues, Mr. Mayor. You did nothing, and that makes you no better than the Gilles Vaillancourt gang. Actions talk, not empty words. This has become a long and complicated dossier because of negligence.  Mr. Mayor, I assure you that if you don’t act within the law, you will find me in your way, and your masks will fall,” she warned. Several other citizens’ complaints also seemed to fall on deaf ears.

Martin C. Barry

The outlook is positive for students with anxiety disorders and special needs at the Sir Wilfrid Laurier School Board’s Laval Junior Academy and Crestview Elementary School with the official arrival of two service dogs to provide comfort and focus in moments of stress and emotional need.

Laval-based Asista and the SWLSB, with the help of partner Nutrience pet foods, held a launch for the service dogs on May 27 at Laval Junior Academy, where one of the dogs has been providing assistance for the past two and a half years.

Service dogs

Facility dogs, trained in obedience and specialty cues, are used in work settings following training in specific techniques which enable the dogs to serve as a tool and a motivator, thus enhancing the accomplishment of goals.

Introduced to the gathering of school board, company and municipal officials were the two dogs: Hope the Labrador who will be stationed at Crestview Elementary, and Wall-E who will be gracing the halls at LJA.

Along with many other dogs trained by Asista, Hope and Wall-E will be doing their part to help the students in their daily activities at both schools.

‘Out of the box’ thinking

“At the Sir Wilfrid Laurier School Board, we pride ourselves for thinking out of the box and finding innovative ways to ensure all our students succeed,” said SWLSB chairman Paolo Galati, while adding that as an educational organization the school board needed to adapt its ways to the growing student population.

“Autism, anxiety disorders and other mental health illnesses are on the rise and the goal of the Facility Service dog program is to provide an open, accessible environment for both students and adults,” said John Agionicolaitis, spokesperson and co-founder of the Asista Foundation.

Dogs helping students

According to LJA interim-principal Eric Ruggi, Wall-E’s role among the students is diverse. “He helps students in difficult situations, either social or educational,” he said. “His presence allows students a chance to interact in a controlled setting with an animal to overcome their fears and apprehensions. He visits classrooms to assist students with special challenges by helping them cope with their emotions.

“He will know if the tension in the room is rising,” continued Ruggi, “and will instinctively seek out students who are in distress. He helps prevent the escalation of a given situation. In a group setting where the dynamics can be difficult, Wall-E provides first a distraction, and finally a connection in order to ease tensions. Wall-E is part of our day to day school life.”

According to Ruggi, Asista is in the process of training a second service dog for Laval Junior Academy – a Golden Retriever named Enzo. “He already started last week and he will continue until the end of this school year and into the next year,” said Ruggi.

Helping reduce bullying

Experts in the training of service dogs say the dogs help to reduce bullying in the school community, increase school spirit and de-escalate high stress situations. Each service dog is medically insured to cover any accidents or illnesses that may occur. Each service dog is also vaccinated and cared for carefully to maintain proper health and hygiene.

LJA student Samantha Tardif said she benefited enormously from the presence of Wall-E. “I used to not really want to come to school – I used to have really major bad anxiety attacks,” she explained. “Without Wall-E or Asista, I don’t know what I would personally do, because there’s not that many foundations that would actually do what they do.”

Other Asista projects

In addition to its work with the SWLSB, Asista has also been working with the federal government to help veterans, while also helping develop standards for service dogs in Canada.

The non-profit organization’s mission is to provide service dogs for people who are dealing with mental health issues. The foundation’s primary goal is to maintain a therapeutic relationship between the individual and the dog to help them cope in difficult settings.

Asista says it is the only foundation in Quebec that exclusively offers certified service dogs for people with PTSD. Its vision is based on matching the right dog to the right person. Their dogs come from shelters and are selected based on their traits.

When the foundation was established in April 2012, Nutrience (produced by a subsidiary of the Montreal-based Hagen Inc.) became involved and has been sponsoring Asista ever since. According to Asista, the demand for their dogs is exceedingly high and is rising quickly.