The Canadian Telecommunications Association (CTA), a national organization representing Canadian telecom service providers, is calling on the federal government to amend Canada’s Criminal Code to include harsher penalties for acts of vandalism or theft of critical telecom network equipment.
While it welcomes proposed changes to the Criminal Code under the government’s new foreign interference legislation — Bill C-70, tabled in the House of Commons on May 6 — which would impose new offences for sabotaging “essential infrastructure” including information and communication technology infrastructure, the CTA said in a press release Monday the new proposed legislation doesn’t go far enough.
“While Bill C-70 addresses acts of sabotage that are intended to endanger the safety, security or defence of Canada, it does not address the rapidly increasing frequency of vandalism and theft that are disrupting telecommunications services in communities across the country,” the release says.
“Whether it is stealing copper wires for resale as scrap metal, or deliberate attempts to damage telecommunications equipment, this rise in incidents of vandalism and theft demands further action. These acts cause major disruptions to affected Canadians and can have a serious impact on public health and safety.”
Telecom service providers in Canada have reported acts of thefts and vandalism of telecommunications sites have increased by more than 400 per cent since 2022, according to the CTA. Copper theft incidents are responsible for the majority of physical security incidents affecting telecom infrastructure.
Service outages caused by theft or damage to telecom equipment, which frequently take longer to repair than other types of outages due to the nature and extent of the damage, have resulted in tens of millions of customer outage minutes each year in communities across Canada, the CTA says. On average, it takes eight to 12 hours for telecom providers to restore service to customers after outages caused by theft or vandalism, it says.
Collectively, service providers spend millions of dollars annually to repair or replace network equipment affected by vandalism or theft, the CTA adds.
“The Canadian Telecommunications Association is calling for additional amendments to the Criminal Code to ensure that those who intentionally damage or steal from telecom infrastructure face severe consequences,” the CTA release says. “Specifically, the Association is asking the federal government to implement the recommendation of the Canadian Telecommunications Network Resiliency Working Group, a sub-committee of the Canadian Security Telecommunications Advisory Committee (CSTAC) made up of telecommunications and public safety experts from the public and private sectors, which has asked the government for legislation that protects telecommunications infrastructure by maximizing criminal penalties ‘in the event of willful or negligent damage to, and/or acts of vandalism or theft of critical network infrastructure.’”
The working group submitted its recommendation, among others, to the federal government back in March 2023.
“Telecommunications networks are the lifelines connecting communities, businesses, and emergency services. Just as we cannot afford disruptions due to sabotage, Canadians’ safety should not be put at risk because of acts of theft and vandalism,” Robert Ghiz, CTA president and CEO, said in the press release. “Network operators are spending more to increase security and protect their network infrastructure, but this alone will not halt these destructive acts. Strengthening the Criminal Code will send a clear message that these actions will not be tolerated.
“As an industry, we are committed to ensuring the resilience and reliability of our networks. But without robust legal deterrents in place, our efforts can only go so far,” Ghiz added. “We implore policymakers to act decisively to enhance the Criminal Code and safeguard our vital communications infrastructure to preserve the safety and security of all Canadians.”
