Skip to content

Toronto Zoo says staff personal info stolen in ransomware cyberattack

TORONTO — The Toronto Zoo says it believes personal information of its current, former and retired employees was stolen in a ransomware cyberattack first detected earlier this month.
20240117150148-65a83d50b2bb9c842534692ejpeg
The Toronto Zoo says it believes personal information of its current, former and retired employees was stolen in a ransomware cyberattack first detected earlier this month. Guests stand in an enclosure at the Toronto Zoo as five-month-old panda cubs are watched by handlers on Monday, March 7, 2016. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Chris Young

TORONTO — The Toronto Zoo says it believes personal information of its current, former and retired employees was stolen in a ransomware cyberattack first detected earlier this month.

The zoo says the information includes past earnings information, social insurance numbers, birthdates, phone numbers and addresses of employees going as far back as 1989.

It says that based on current information, it does not appear banking information was stolen as that isn't stored on the zoo's servers.

The zoo says that as a "proactive step," it will be offering all current, former and retired staff for that period a complimentary two-year credit monitoring service.

It says it will continue to investigate and will notify affected individuals directly. Animal care and support systems have not been affected and the zoo says it is operating as normal.

The organization publicly disclosed the attack on Jan. 8 and said the incident had been reported to police.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 17, 2024.

The Canadian Press