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SecurityQuiet 12d · day 13

Vishing attack breaches four of Canada's top law firms

Hackers posing as IT staff tricked employees at McCarthy Tétrault, Davies, Bennett Jones and BLG, stealing thousands of client files.

newest coverage 11d agosummary written 11d ago5 pieces5 likes & upvotes Google NewsMastodonRedditHacker News

What to know

  • Hackers used voice phishing (vishing) calls impersonating IT staff to breach McCarthy Tétrault, Davies, Bennett Jones and BLG.
  • At least seven employee accounts were compromised across the four firms, with 31,000 files reportedly stolen from McCarthy Tétrault alone.
  • Affected clients have been told they were impacted but often lack specific details on what was taken.
  • The hackers' identity, their use of the stolen data, and whether it has leaked remain unknown, raising fears of further attacks on law firms.

McCarthy Tétrault LLP Breached law firmBennett Jones LLP Breached law firmBorden Ladner Gervais LLP (BLG) Breached law firmDavies Ward Phillips & Vineberg LLP Breached law firm

Vishing attack breaches four of Canada's top law firms
theglobeandmail.com

How it unfolded 2 developments, newest first · click a bar or a number to jump articlesposts

Peak 1 piece in 3h at Oct 30, 1 PM; 5 pieces over 14 days (1 article · 4 posts) Oct 30, 1 PM — 1 piece · 1 article — Google News 1Oct 30, 4 PM — quietOct 30, 7 PM — 1 piece · 1 post — Mastodon 1Oct 30, 10 PM — quietOct 31, 1 AM — quietOct 31, 4 AM — quietOct 31, 7 AM — quietOct 31, 10 AM — 1 piece · 1 post — Reddit 1Oct 31, 1 PM — 1 piece · 1 post — Hacker News 1Oct 31, 4 PM — quietOct 31, 7 PM — quietOct 31, 10 PM — quietNov 1, 1 AM — quietNov 1, 3 AM — 1 piece · 1 post — Mastodon 1Nov 1, 6 AM — quietNov 1, 9 AM — quietNov 1, 12 PM — quietNov 1, 3 PM — quietNov 1, 6 PM — quietNov 1, 9 PM — quietNov 2, 12 AM — quietNov 2, 3 AM — quietNov 2, 6 AM — quietNov 2, 9 AM — quietNov 2, 12 PM — quietNov 2, 3 PM — quietNov 2, 6 PM — quietNov 2, 9 PM — quietNov 3, 12 AM — quietNov 3, 3 AM — quietNov 3, 6 AM — quietNov 3, 9 AM — quietNov 3, 12 PM — quietNov 3, 3 PM — quietNov 3, 6 PM — quietNov 3, 9 PM — quietNov 4, 12 AM — quietNov 4, 3 AM — quietNov 4, 6 AM — quietNov 4, 9 AM — quietNov 4, 12 PM — quietNov 4, 3 PM — quietNov 4, 6 PM — quietNov 4, 9 PM — quietNov 5, 12 AM — quietNov 5, 3 AM — quietNov 5, 6 AM — quietNov 5, 9 AM — quietNov 5, 12 PM — quietNov 5, 3 PM — quietNov 5, 6 PM — quietNov 5, 9 PM — quietNov 6, 12 AM — quietNov 6, 3 AM — quietNov 6, 6 AM — quietNov 6, 9 AM — quietNov 6, 12 PM — quietNov 6, 3 PM — quietNov 6, 6 PM — quietNov 6, 9 PM — quietNov 7, 12 AM — quietNov 7, 3 AM — quietNov 7, 6 AM — quietNov 7, 9 AM — quietNov 7, 12 PM — quietNov 7, 3 PM — quietNov 7, 6 PM — quietNov 7, 9 PM — quietNov 8, 12 AM — quietNov 8, 3 AM — quietNov 8, 6 AM — quietNov 8, 9 AM — quietNov 8, 12 PM — quietNov 8, 3 PM — quietNov 8, 6 PM — quietNov 8, 9 PM — quietNov 9, 12 AM — quietNov 9, 3 AM — quietNov 9, 6 AM — quietNov 9, 9 AM — quietNov 9, 12 PM — quietNov 9, 3 PM — quietNov 9, 6 PM — quietNov 9, 9 PM — quietNov 10, 12 AM — quietNov 10, 3 AM — quietNov 10, 6 AM — quietNov 10, 9 AM — quietNov 10, 12 PM — quietNov 10, 3 PM — quietNov 10, 6 PM — quietNov 10, 9 PM — quietNov 11, 12 AM — quietNov 11, 3 AM — quietNov 11, 6 AM — quietNov 11, 9 AM — quietNov 11, 12 PM — quietNov 11, 3 PM — quietNov 11, 6 PM — quietNov 11, 9 PM — quietYesterday, 12 AM — quietYesterday, 3 AM — quietYesterday, 6 AM — quietYesterday, 9 AM — quietYesterday, 12 PM — quietYesterday, 3 PM — quietYesterday, 6 PM — quietYesterday, 9 PM — quiet ◂ 1 earlier2
Oct 31Nov 1Nov 2Nov 3Nov 4Nov 5Nov 6Nov 7Nov 8Nov 9Nov 10Nov 11now · 12:08 AM ET
  1. 2

    Key unknowns remainAttackers' identity and data use

    Sources say it is still unknown who the hackers are, how they are using the stolen data, and whether firms are actively monitoring for leaks, fueling concern about further attacks on law firms industry-wide.

    “The compromised information included reports on revenue from clients; for certain clients, general descriptions of our mandates for them were also involved and as we identify those clients, we will contact them directly.”
    — Bennett Jones LLP, Law firm statement · source
    1. 1 outlet How hackers broke into four of Canada's top law firms, stole client files and caused chaos

      first by The Globe and Mail, 13d ago

    • clarinette@mastodon.online

      # lawFirm # legal # hacker # personaldata # security # confidentiality https://www. theglobeandmail.com/business/a rticle-law-firms-hackers-how-did-it-happen-client-files-voice-phishing/

      clarinette@mastodon.onlineMastodon11d agoview on Mastodon ↗
  2. 1

    Globe and Mail details how many accounts were compromised

    Reporting found at least seven employee accounts were compromised across the four firms — four at McCarthy Tétrault, two at Bennett Jones, one at Davies — while the number at BLG remains unclear.

  3. background

    Bennett Jones and BLG confirm breaches, detail scope — On Friday, Bennett Jones said its document management and accounting systems were unaffected but revenue reports and descriptions of client mandates were exposed; BLG confirmed an internal investigation found client-related files were accessed by an unauthorized third party.

  4. background

    McCarthy Tétrault confirms a third party accessed its files — On Thursday, McCarthy Tétrault said a third party had gained unauthorized access to certain files; a source directly involved told The Globe and Mail that 31,000 files were stolen from the firm.

  5. background

    Hackers vish Canadian law firm employees to gain network access — About a week before the story broke, lawyers at the firms received calls, often via Microsoft Teams or spoofed IT phone numbers, from attackers posing as IT staff helping with a 'critical software update' or expired password, and employees let them in.