Tag Archive for: COVID19

COVID-19 phishing test email criticized by Palm Coast council member

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Ed Danko

The City of Palm Coast’s IT Department sent an email to employees and at least one council member asking their COVID-19 vaccination status, stating that the information was necessary due to new county requirements.

Beyond the controversial nature of the question in these divided times, there was another issue: It was not true.

According to the city’s Information Technology Director Doug Akins, the email was just a test to see how employees respond to possible internet scams.

Local news:Palm Coast Councilman Ed Danko was ‘rude’ but didn’t create hostile workplace, report says

Related:Palm Coast selects 6 finalists for city manager, including ex-Flagler sheriff Jim Manfre

Councilman Ed Danko said in a phone interview that it was a poor way to check responses.

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Malawi Household Food Security Bulletin | Mobile Vulnerability Analysis and Mapping (mVAM) on the Effects of COVID-19 in Malawi Round 17: 8th September – 7 th October 2021 – Malawi

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SUMMARY OF KEY FINDINGS

  • The food security situation across the country remains stable, with almost all interviewed households classified as having acceptable to borderline food consumption as they consume from the 2021 harvest.

  • The proportion of households who are employing the most severe consumption-based coping strategies remains relatively low, ranging between 19 percent and 21 percent for the current round and the immediate past four rounds, indicating a generally stable food security situation.

  • Physical access to markets has increased slightly, likely due to the decrease in new COVID-19 cases as the third wave of the pandemic dies down coupled with the fact that rural households are still selling their produce from the recent harvest.

BACKGROUND

During this reporting period, Malawi continued experiencing a decline in the number of COVID-19 cases, deaths, and admissions to Emergency Treatment Units (ETUs). As of the last day of this reporting period (7th October 2021), the Ministry of Health indicated that the country registered nine new COVID-19 cases in the past 24 hours, down from 952 cases during the peak of third wave on 22 July 2021.

Cumulatively, Malawi has recorded 61,648 cases, including 2,287 deaths with a case fatality rate at 3.71 percent.
Further, cumulatively, 56,208 cases recovered, with an overall recovery rate of 91.2 percent. Furthermore, on 8th October 2021, the Government announced the continued observance of the COVID-19 restrictions, which include wearing face masks, observing social distancing, and washing hands to prevent the spread of the disease.

METHODOLOGY

Round 17 of remote household-level survey data collection in response to COVID-19 monitoring and seasonal trends in food security took place between 8th September – 7 th October 2021. The survey for this report was conducted using live telephone calls, collecting information from some 2,504 households in all districts and major cities across the country.

The sample size was calculated based on the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification Technical Manual (Version 3.0) guideline of having at least 150 samples per strata. Additional details on this methodology are available in…

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Ontario government worker charged in COVID-19 vaccination data breach

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Suspects from the Ottawa and Montreal areas, one of whom worked at a government vaccination call centre, were arrested Tuesday in connection with an OPP investigation into a security breach of Ontario’s COVID-19 immunization system.

The province’s cybercrime team said it started an investigation into a possible data breach on Nov. 17 when the Ontario government flagged reports from the public about spam text messages received after residents booked COVID-19 vaccine appointments or downloaded their vaccination certificates.

On Monday, OPP executed search warrants in Ottawa as well as in Quebec with help from the Sûreté du Québec.

Police said they seized several computers and electronic devices.


Click to play video: 'Ministry confirms possible data breach at Pickering Long-term care home'



Ministry confirms possible data breach at Pickering Long-term care home

Ministry confirms possible data breach at Pickering Long-term care home – May 11, 2020

Ayoub Sayid, a 21-year-old from Gloucester, Ont., is facing charges of unauthorized use of a computer. OPP said in a statement that the suspect is a government employee who worked in the province’s vaccine contact centre.

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Rahim Abdu, 22, of Vaudreuil-Dorion, Que., faces the same charges.

Both accused have been released with future court dates.

A spokesperson for Ontario Solicitor-General Sylvia Jones said Tuesday that Sayid was working in the call centre through a third-party vendor, “but is no longer employed by the government.”

Spokesperson Stephen Warner also confirmed that “no personal health information was accessed” as part of the breach.

Jones told reporters on Monday that the public can feel secure in using the online vaccination portal.

Read more:
LifeLabs failed to protect personal information of millions, says B.C. and Ontario report

“When we hear of potential breaches, we investigate thoroughly,” she said at a press conference Monday.

“We have confidence in the booking system, that there are no concerns.”

An OPP spokesperson said the cybersecurity unit is still investigating to determine how…

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Ontario government employee among two charged in COVID-19 vaccine portal security breach

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TORONTO —
A government employee is among two people charged following an investigation into a security breach related to Ontario’s COVID-19 immunization system.

Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) say they were first asked to investigate the breach on Nov. 17 after the government received reports of spam text messages received by individuals who scheduled appointments or accessed vaccine certificates through the COVID-19 immunization system.

The security breach was confirmed publicly on Monday, with the Solicitor General’s office telling CTV News Toronto that the reported texts were “financial in nature.”

CTV News Toronto spoke with two residents who received phishing text messages they believe could have been related to the breach. Both messages were addressed to their children using their full names.

“What really triggered it for me was the spelling of her name. It was her name, her full name with middle name, and her middle name was fully capitalized and the only time I’ve ever seen that was on her vaccine passport,” Toronto resident Carla Embleton said.

Ottawa resident Mike Primeau said he received a similar text to his cell phone saying that his son had been sent “a reimbursement of $163.36” and was asked to reply to receive the payment.

spam text

Primeau was the one who registered his entire family—including his son—for the COVID-19 vaccine.

Multiple other people reported receiving text messages with either their full names or the full names of their children; however the requests differed slightly.

In a news release issued Tuesday, investigators said that two search warrants—one in Quebec and another in Ottawa—were executed on Nov. 22 in connection with the security breach. Several devices, computers and laptops were seized.

As a result of the investigation, 21-year-old Gloucester resident Ayoub Sayid and 22-year-old Rahim Abdu from Vaudreuil-Dorio were taken into custody.

They were both charged with Unauthorized Use of a Computer contrary to s. 342.1(1)(c) of the Criminal Code.

Police say that Sayid is an employee of the Ontario Ministry of Government and Consumer Services in the vaccine contact centre.

The charges have not been proven…

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