BC Freedom of Information and Privacy Association
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IRS Direct File won’t be available next year. Here’s what that means for taxpayers
WASHINGTON (AP) — IRS Direct File, the electronic system for filing tax returns for free, will not be offered next year, the Trump administration has confirmed. An email sent Monday from IRS official Cynthia Noe to state comptrollers that participate in the Direct File program said that “IRS Direct File will not be available in…
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Cyberattack on Marks & Spencer slices profits by more than a half
LONDON (AP) — British retailer Marks and Spencer saw its half-year profits more than halve as a result of a cyberattack that brought its online business to a grinding halt. In a statement Wednesday, M&S said its underlying pretax profits tumbled 55.4% to 184.1 million pounds ($240 million) in the six months to Sept. 27,…
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Officials arrest man who allegedly promised to get weapons for attack on Jewish targets in Germany
BERLIN (AP) — A man suspected of promising to get weapons for an attack on Jewish targets in Germany was arrested Wednesday in Denmark, Germany’s top prosecutor said. The suspect, an Afghan national who was identified as Tawab M. in line with German privacy rules, had allegedly been in contact with a Danish national who…
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Pentagon strips travel reimbursement for troops seeking abortions, fertility treatment
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Defense Department will no longer reimburse service members for travel out of state to get reproductive health care, including abortions and fertility treatments, according to a new memo. The directive signed this week eliminates a rarely used Biden administration policy enacted in October 2022, after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v.…
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Tour guide at former Colorado gold mine fell out of elevator after apparently not latching door
DENVER (AP) — A tour guide killed at a former Colorado gold mine last year fell out of a crowded elevator taking tourists below ground after apparently not latching its door closed, documents obtained by The Associated Press show. As the elevator descended, the door swung out and caught the side of the mine shaft,…
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South Carolina death row inmate maintains his innocence and won’t ask for clemency
COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — After the U.S. Supreme Court rejected the final appeal of a South Carolina inmate, he decided not to ask the governor for clemency, saying he didn’t want to spend the rest of his life in prison for a murder he has always insisted he did not commit. Marion Bowman Jr., 44,…
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CDSBEO not affected by PowerSchool data breach
KEMPTVILLE – A recent rash of cyberattacks and data breaches have impacted school boards across a number of jurisdictions since Christmas, but the local English-Catholic board is not one of those affected. Officials with the Catholic District School Board of Eastern Ontario confirmed that it is not affected by the recent PowerSchool Inc. breach, or…
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Over 50,000 students exposed by data breach
BROCKVILLE – A cyberattack in early January has resulted in an extensive data breach at the region’s largest school board. Administration at the Upper Canada District School Board announced in an update on the ongoing internet issues at the board that an extensive data breach has been discovered. Students who enrolled or attended a UCDSB…
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Update on data breach
Parents received an update from Wild Rose School Division last week in regards to the PowerSchool data breach. On December 28, both WRSD and the St. Thomas Aquinas Roman Catholic School Division were part of a cyber security breach through the cloud-based software that is used for sharing student’s marks and assignments with parents. Once…
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No data breach detected after SLRD email compromise
The Squamish-Lillooet Regional District (SLRD) is investigating a suspicious email that was sent from an official SLRD email account to multiple recipients last week on Jan. 23, 2025. The regional district says it took action to secure the compromised account and prevent further unauthorized messages from being sent. The email appeared to reference a purchase…
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FBI wrestles with a spike in sexual misconduct claims and male-dominated culture
WASHINGTON (AP) — The FBI has recorded a sharp spike in complaints that its own agents and employees have engaged in sexual misconduct, ranging from assault to harassment, despite a pledge by bureau leaders to eliminate the longstanding problem. An Associated Press investigation found the FBI has received nearly 300 allegations of sexual misconduct since…