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SAQ computers hacked, personal data of employees consulted

SAQ store sign. The Canadian Press Images/Mario Beauregard

The Société des alcools du Québec (SAQ) announces that it was the target of a hacking attempt a month and a half ago.

In a press release sent on Tuesday, the SAQ said that no data had been leaked, but that the personal information of certain employees had been able to be consulted.

The hacker (s) came from outside the organization, it was said, and they could not get hold of any data related to its customers, according to an analysis conducted by Cytelligence, a firm of experts in cybersecurity.

The corporation’s management says it obtained the results of this analysis on Monday, but was informed as of last week that documents containing sensitive information could have been consulted during the intrusion on May 15.

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This had been quickly detected and blocked by the SAQ’s computer monitoring tools, and the breach has since been closed, it should be emphasized.

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Among the 17 documents on display, some contain the social insurance number, name, address, date of birth, and weekly payroll for both active and inactive employees.

They will be contacted by the SAQ and will be offered a credit monitoring and identity theft insurance service for a period of one year with Equifax.

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