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You Could Be Owed Up to $5,000: The CRA Data Breach Settlement, Explained

  August 21, 2026 If you had a Government of Canada online account back in 2020, it's worth five minutes to check whether you're eligible for a payout. Claims are now open in an $8.7-million federal settlement tied to a wave of 2020 cyberattacks on Canada Revenue Agency and other Government of Canada accounts. If your CRA My Account, My Service Canada Account, or another GCKey-linked account was compromised, you may be entitled to compensation — in some cases, up to $5,000. Here's what happened, who qualifies, and exactly how to file before the deadline. What happened Between June and August 2020, hackers used "credential stuffing" — testing stolen usernames and passwords from other data leaks against government login pages — to break into thousands of Government of Canada online accounts. In some cases, attackers viewed confidential personal and financial information; in others, they used stolen access to file fraudulent claims for pandemic-era benefits like CERB...

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Ottawa Expands Automatic Tax Filing to Simplify Tax Returns


 The federal government is taking significant steps to modernize the tax filing process for Canadians. In a recent fall economic statement, Ottawa announced plans to expand automatic tax filing services, aiming to make it easier for Canadians, especially those with simple tax situations, to file their annual returns.

The initiative, which builds on a national pilot program launched in 2023, will allow the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) to automatically file tax returns on behalf of eligible lower-income Canadians starting as early as the 2025 tax year. The program has already shown promising results, with over two million eligible Canadians participating in the pilot and receiving billions in benefits and credits.

The expansion will also explore options to make free online tax software more accessible, ensuring that more Canadians can benefit from simplified tax filing. This move is part of Ottawa's broader efforts to reduce the complexity and cost of tax filing services, making them more user-friendly and efficient.

With these changes, the government hopes to increase tax compliance and ensure that more Canadians receive the benefits and credits they are entitled to. The CRA's SimpleFile service, which allows tax returns to be filed in as little as 10 minutes, will play a crucial role in this initiative.

As Ottawa continues to push for a more streamlined tax filing process, Canadians can look forward to a simpler and more efficient way to manage their taxes in the coming years.




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