In 2009, a significant data breach involving British Columbia’s Interior Health Authority allegedly exposed the personal information of over 28,000 current and former employees. The compromised data includes names, dates of birth, Social Insurance Numbers, and contact information.
Reports indicate that evidence of the 2009 data breach was first discovered during a police investigation in 2017. A subsequent police investigation in 2024 and media investigations in 2025 revealed the data breach was much larger than first reported. Evidence to date indicates that the compromised data has been sold and distributed on the dark web.
Authorities have verified that the compromised data has been used in fraudulent activities, including unauthorized Canada Revenue Agency refunds and illegitimate loans.
A class action is a legal case through which one person makes a claim to the Court on behalf of a similarly situated class of people who have the same or a similar legal claim. A class action seeks to hold a defendant or defendants responsible for their conduct that affects each member of the class by resolving issues that are common to the class in the same legal proceeding, instead of each class member bringing a claim individually.
The individual who first files the claim must ask the Court for permission to proceed as a class action. If permission is granted (referred as “authorized” in Quebec, and “certified” in all other Canadian provinces) and the case may proceed as a class action, the Court will appoint an individual as “Representative Plaintiff” to represent the best interests of the class during the litigation and will define the class group. Each person who meets the criteria of the class group is considered a “Class Member”.
If you believe that your information was compromised in this data breach, please contact Slater Vecchio LLP by filling out the form on this webpage.
