Claim dropped in Acciona/Metro Van data breach case
A legal issue that revolved around the termination of the North Shore Wastewater Treatment Plant construction contract, an open laptop, and cellphone photos of confidential information has come to an end.
Metro Vancouver filed a consent order last December, officially ending a legal imbroglio between the regional government and multinational conglomerate Acciona.
Background
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In January 2022, two days before terminating the deal with Acciona, Metro’s directors held a meeting.
At that meeting, a confidential report was distributed to Metro’s directors advising: “it is highly likely that Metro Vancouver will be headed to litigation as it relates to this project. Confidentiality continues to be of the utmost importance.”
A document with “highly sensitive and confidential information” that was distributed to Metro’s board of directors ended up at Acciona.
The breach was allegedly caused by Coquitlam’s now retired city manager Peter Steblin, who used Mayor Richard Stewart’s Metro ID and password to access the confidential report, according to an affidavit provided by Metro Vancouver commissioner Jerry W. Dobrovolny.
According to Norton Rose Fulbright – the law firm representing Metro Vancouver – Steblin left his laptop open and exited the room. At that point, Steblin’s daughter Anika Calder – who was also an Acciona employee – took cellphone pictures of the documents and sent the photos, directly or indirectly, to at least four people, according to the notice.
That notice also stated the extent of the breach is “potentially wide” given the access Calder had to materials distributed during multiple closed meetings leading up to the decision to terminate the deal with Acciona.
End of the imbroglio
However, after hiring an independent forensic expert to review the matter, Metro Vancouver was: “satisfied that no additional confidential information was shared beyond what was previously identified,” according to Metro Vancouver spokesperson Jillian Glover.
The application against Acciona and Calder has been discontinued.
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