Would-be Nova Scotia Power customer unable to get electricity hooked up
A would-be Nova Scotia Power customer who is moving into a new home says she is unable to get her electricity connected while the company responds only to emergencies and outages amid a cybersecurity incident that was discovered April 25.
Amara Fortier is in the process of moving from her residence at Acadia University to live off-campus in Wolfville, N.S., with three roommates. More than a week before the company disclosed the cybersecurity breach on April 28, she said she tried to create an online account but was unsuccessful. She called Nova Scotia Power and was told they couldn't do anything about it, she said.
"Especially after a big move, we can't afford to be going and getting takeout, maybe getting a hotel room until power comes back on. We're just sitting there in the dark then," Fortier told CBC News on Wednesday, the day before she was set to move.
"It's not very reassuring when you call the customer service and they tell you they can't do anything."
Fortier attempted to get an answer from the company on Facebook too, but was told by the Nova Scotia Power account that it was "currently open to support our customers for emergencies and outages only."
'I wasn't getting any answers'
Fortier said she turned to social media because she was stressed out about the situation.
"I was upset because I wasn't getting any answers," Fortier said.
Even customers with existing accounts who are trying to move into new homes are having a difficult time reaching Nova Scotia Power about new connections.
James Walker is in the process of moving to Morden, N.S., from Dartmouth — about an hour and a half away. While the electricity in his new home in Kings County was still connected on Wednesday morning, Walker said he had no way of confirming how much longer that would last.
"Fortunately, I'm in an apartment so I can take the next month to go and move. But if I wasn't, I would definitely be in a hard spot," Walker told CBC News.
He said when he tried to log into his Nova Scotia Power account on April 25, the website wasn't accessible, but he didn't think much of it at the time.
"But then I saw on Monday they actually posted they've been having a cybersecurity incident since then. I was a little surprised they took that long to go and post about it," Walker said.
Questions remain about incident
He said an email he subsequently sent to the company hadn't been answered.
Walker wants to know if any customer information was compromised in the cybersecurity incident. In a response to that question on Facebook, the company said "the investigation is ongoing, but we will communicate with customers if it's determined that they have been impacted by this incident."
Walker also wondered when service will be fully operational again.
"I think they should be communicating a lot more, like even if they don't necessarily have progress, even just telling people, that is something as opposed to just leaving people guessing," he said.
CBC News contacted Nova Scotia Power on Wednesday night to ask about the plight of new customers moving into new homes without electricity, whether customer information was compromised in the breach and when service would be fully restored. The company's response will be added once received.
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