Significant malware attack hits Waterloo Catholic District School Board

The Waterloo Catholic District School Board was in the midst of responding to a significant malware incident on Wednesday, according to chief managing officer John Shewchuk.

Shewchuk said the board learned of the attack early on Sunday.

"Our IT team worked through Sunday, and we promptly retained a leading cyber-security expert," Shewchuk said in an email.

The board has since taken steps to secure its network, Shewchuk said. He said some services have been restored but that there is "more work to do."

There is no indication that personal or business information has been taken as a result of the attack, Shewchuk said, although a forensic investigation is still to come.

"If we learn of compromised personal information, we will notify affected individuals," he said.

Hackers hit Ontario

The malware incident is the latest in a string of cyber-attacks that have hit southern Ontario this year.

Last week, Waterloo Brewing Ltd. said it has lost $2.1 million in a cyber attack.

The city of Stratford agreed to pay an attacker $75,000 worth of Bitcoin to unlock its information systems following an attack in April.

Hospitals in Listowel and Wingham were also hit by a ransomware attack in September and regained access to their systems in October.

The city of Woodstock was also struck by a cyber-attack in September.