The exterior of Saint John City Hall is pictured in this file photo. (Wave News)
It could be several more months before Saint Johners can start paying parking tickets online again.
The city shut down its payment site in late December after learning of a breach involving third-party software Click2Gov from CentralSquare Technologies.
More than 10,000 people who paid parking tickets online between May 2017 and mid-December 2018 may have been impacted.
A staff report to council said they are looking at a new online payment solution, with a goal of launching it by the end of June.
The solution being investigated is currently used by Saint John Energy and by the Saint John Parking Commission for recurring monthly billing for off-street parking.
Council will be presented with the report at Monday night’s meeting.
New Details About Breach
The report also provides more detail about the breach itself, which the city learned about through media reports on Dec. 21, 2018.
It said the attacker accessed the city’s server through the web to download a file with captured credit card info.
The attacker then deleted the file, triggering the creation of a new file with card information and essentially leaving no trace.
According to the report, the city was told the version of software it was using was not part of the targeted attack.
The city is taking steps to enhance the safeguarding of its information systems and data, such as securing cyber insurance and making sure there is a disaster recovery and business continuity plan in place in case of future attacks.
On Dec. 17 — four days before the data breach was discovered — city council approved an agreement which will see the Canadian Institute of Cybersecurity to assess and evaluate security measures, as well as identify vulnerabilities and risks to the security of all information.
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