A mystery why MPs targeted by Chinese hackers were not told sooner, inquiry told

It emerged earlier in 2024 that some MPs and senators faced cyberattacks from the hackers in 2021 because of their involvement with the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China

OTTAWA — Conservative MP Garnett Genuis told a federal inquiry today that parliamentarians who were targeted by Chinese hackers could have taken immediate protective steps if they had been informed sooner.

It emerged earlier this year that in 2021 some MPs and senators faced cyberattacks from the hackers because of their involvement with the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China, which pushes for accountability from Beijing.

In 2022, U.S. authorities apparently informed the Canadian government of the attacks, and it in turn advised parliamentary IT officials — but not individual MPs.

Genuis, a Canadian co-chair of the inter-parliamentary alliance, told a federal commission of inquiry on foreign interference today that it remains mysterious to him why he wasn’t informed about the attacks sooner.

Liberal MP John McKay, also a Canadian co-chair of the alliance, said there should be a clear protocol for advising parliamentarians of cyberthreats.

mckay
Liberal MP John McKay, chair of the Standing Committee on Public Safety and National Security, waits for the start of a meeting in Ottawa on Monday, July 15, 2019.Photo by Justin Tang /THE CANADIAN PRESS

Several weeks of public inquiry hearings will focus on the capacity of federal agencies to detect, deter and counter foreign meddling.

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