MPs, senator ask why government didn't warn them they were targeted by China-backed hackers

Conservative MP Garnett Genuis says his privilege as a parliamentarian was violated when the Canadian government failed to warn him and other members of a parliamentary alliance that they had been targeted by China-affiliated hackers.

Genuis said the FBI told the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China (IPAC) that members of the international group had been hit with a pixel reconnaissance cyberattack launched by a suspected Beijing-controlled entity in 2021.

He and other Canadian IPAC members only found out last week, he said.

"This was part of a coordinated attack," Genuis told the House of Commons Monday morning, rising on a question of privilege. 

"This was identified as a progressive reconnaissance attack — an attack aimed at gathering useful information to be used for subsequent escalating attacks against us."

Liberal MP John McKay, another targeted member of IPAC, told CBC News he received a verbal briefing from IPAC's executive director warning him that the hacking group Advanced Persistent Threat 31 (APT31) was behind the attack and had access to their computers. The U.K. and U.S. allege the group is an arm of China's Ministry of State Security.

"The problem is that this attack is vague. And it's not clear to me how any information could be accessed or could be used," McKay said.

"It's a bit disconcerting." 

The story was first reported by the Globe and Mail Monday morning. 

According to Genuis, the hackers used a mailing tool that allowed them to track delivery metrics on emails and receive data from victims who opened the emails — including IP addresses, browser types and operating systems.

"The way I understand it, it's either something or it's nothing," said McKay.

Genuis said other Canadians were targeted by the attack and not all are comfortable with coming forward with their names.

In a statement released earlier on Monday, Liberal MP Judy Sgro, Conservative MPs James Bezan, Stephanie Kusie and Tom Kmiec, and Sen. Marilou McPhedran confirmed they were affected by the attack and joined Genuis and McKay in demanding to know why they weren't informed sooner.

"I can't see a good reason for not telling people that they're being targeted, especially when those people are parliamentarians," said McPhedran.