In January 2023, a cyber attack was conducted by an unknown entity on Qulliq Energy Corporation (QEC) in Iqaluit.
The issue was discovered when an employee tried to send an email to a vendor and the system began to act abnormally. The IT help desk was contacted and when they began looking into the issue, they identified the problem, and took immediate action to shut down internal IT systems to begin identifying the breach.
Fortunately for the region, powerplants remained active as the attack appeared to be limited to QEC’s email, billing and payroll databases which shut down operations for a few days. No evidence of customer data being compromised was found. A full report of the attack was promised once the investigation into the incident had been completed.
Premier of Nunavut, P.J. Akeeagok, announced plans to transition control of the Qulliq Energy Corporation’s IT Networks to the Government of Nunavut (GN).
“QEC’s ongoing IT needs are significant”, he said in the legislative assembly.
“The GN has already made significant investments in its IT infrastructure that helps improve and support critical services for our communities and its modernized systems have the capacity to accommodate QEC”.
Tina Nleya, director of corporate affairs for QEC, was quoted saying the IT take over by GN is the “best solution” to defend against future attacks.
While this was an active incident in the region, it highlights future challenges for the Arctic. As technology and infrastructure continue to grow and advance, the challenges that come with those technologies will become more prevalent, and the fallout from an attack that could have disrupted power to an entire territory highlights the significant need for security both physically and in the technology being built.
Canadian Arctic Security 
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