DDoS Attack Leads to Service Disruptions at Canadian Airports

The Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) reported that a cyberattack caused widespread service disruptions at Canadian airports. Connectivity issues affected several automated border control systems, including registration kiosks and electronic gates. The attack appears to have been carried out by the pro-Russian group NoName057(16).

According to the Canadian newspaper La Presse, the DDoS attack resulted in significant delays in processing arriving passengers at border checkpoints across the country, including at Montréal–Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport. Airport officials stated that system operations were restored within a few hours.

“We are working closely with our partners to assess and investigate the situation. The safety of Canadians and travelers is CBSA’s top priority. No personal information was disclosed as a result of these attacks,” the CBSA emphasized.

The Russian-speaking group NoName057(16) claimed responsibility for the attack, announcing on their Telegram channel that they had targeted several Canadian organizations, including the CBSA, the Canadian Air Transport Security Authority, and a number of government and financial institutions.

Previously, the hackers had stated they would attack Canadian organizations whenever Prime Minister Justin Trudeau made “speeches in support of Ukraine.”

Last week, the Canadian Centre for Cyber Security even issued a warning to local IT professionals and executives about “DDoS campaigns targeting the Government of Canada, as well as the financial and transportation sectors.” Experts noted that some of these activities were linked to pro-Russian hacking groups.

However, CBSA representatives did not specifically blame NoName057(16) for the incident, nor did they explain how the DDoS attacks could have affected computer systems connected to airport registration kiosks, as such systems are typically isolated from the internet and operate autonomously.