Montreal Police Data Leak Exposes Officer Names and Phone Numbers

Following a cyber-attack on Montreal`s Police Department, hacker group “The People” posted the names, positions and telephone numbers of police members and managers in a PasteBin post.

With the attack under investigation, officials were reluctant comment on the matter when Quebec newspaper La Presse broke the news. Saying police use an obsolete computer system, Police Union President Yves Francoeur said he believes the exposure of such data puts officers and their families at risk.

“We already knew that our computer system was archaic,” said Francoeur. “If they had access to SPVM data, it means that they also had access to personal addresses. This endangers families and children.”

The message posted by “The People” indicates this is a warning for authorities “to withhold violence during the Education Summit,” while upholding the same anti-corruption and injustice principles as Anonymous.

“This is a warning to withhold violence during the Education Summit . . . disobey your orders, find the dignity to know the difference between right and wrong, and the courage to act on that,” according to the PasteBin post. “We are only asking that you open your eyes to the injustice you commit, the corruption you enable and the name you are defending.”

Other cyber-attacks last year targeted the Department of Public Safety, the Education Department, and others, by paralyzing their corresponding websites and posting collected data online. At the time, six people were brought to court and officials reported they will continue to fight such attacks.