Canadian Utility Emera and Nova Scotia Power Hit by Cyberattack
Nova Scotia Power and its parent company, Emera, are responding to a significant cyberattack that disrupted several business systems but did not affect power delivery.
The breach was discovered on April 25, when both companies identified unauthorized access to parts of their Canadian networks and servers tied to business operations. In response, affected servers were shut down and isolated. The attack disrupted IT services, including customer support phone lines and the online portal.
As of April 28, the companies had not issued further updates, stating only that efforts to restore impacted systems were ongoing.
Nova Scotia Power supplies electricity to approximately 550,000 customers. Emera operates electric and natural gas utilities serving 2.6 million customers across Canada, the U.S., and the Caribbean.
Crucially, the companies emphasized that the attack had no impact on physical infrastructure or service delivery. “There remains no disruption to any of our Canadian physical operations,” the statement read, affirming continued reliable service to customers and no impact on Emera’s U.S. or Caribbean operations.
An investigation is underway to determine whether any customer or sensitive business data was compromised. While the nature of the attack suggests the possibility of ransomware, no group has publicly claimed responsibility as of now.
Cyberattacks on energy companies are a growing concern, with both criminal and nation-state actors frequently targeting the sector. In a recent high-profile case, the Chinese-linked Volt Typhoon group reportedly had covert access to the U.S. power grid for nearly 300 days in 2023.
