Winnipeg Free Press

Winnipeg Free Press (Newspaper) - August 1, 2024, Winnipeg, Manitoba THURSDAY AUGUST 1, 2024 ● ASSOCIATE EDITOR, NEWS: STACEY THIDRICKSON 204-697-7292 ● CITY.DESK@FREEPRESS.MB.CA ● WINNIPEGFREEPRESS.COM SECTION B CONNECT WITH WINNIPEG’S NO. 1 NEWS SOURCE ▼ CITY ● BUSINESS Man’s card hit for US$2.1K in Ticketmaster breach Class-action lawsuit just the ticket: ex-client NICOLE BUFFIE A WINNIPEGGER whose credit card was compromised in a recent Ticket- master security breach wants to see a class-action lawsuit launched against the entertainment-industry giant. The federal privacy commissioner announced Wednesday it would be in- vestigating Ticketmaster’s practices with respect to security safeguards and whether the company complied with breach notification requirements. Geoff Peters was reading a Free Press story detailing another Mani- toban’s experience of being skimmed thousands of dollars from her Ticket- master-linked credit card when he checked his Visa statement. He found a July 14 charge for US$2,100 to the American Registry of Pathology, a medical book company based in Maryland. “I’m like, ‘This doesn’t sound like anything I would have ever bought, let alone spend more than my entire pay- cheque on, on a Saturday night,” Peters said Wednesday. Ticketmaster, owned by U.S.-based Live Nation Entertainment Inc., noti- fied customers in early July that “an unauthorized third party” snagged information from a cloud database in April and May. The company said the accessed data could have included customers’ names, basic contact information and payment-card information such as en- crypted credit or debit card numbers and expiration dates. Peters never received a notification from Ticketmaster that his information was included in the breach, but the tim- ing raised red flags. “This is the only account that it could have happened to,” he said. “It just seemed too coincidental to be a coinci- dence.” He later found out the same company tried to charge another $1,500 to his card, but the purchase was flagged and declined. The Winnipegger hasn’t used his Ticketmaster account in nearly a year; he began boycotting the Califor- nia-based company when ticket prices increased exponentially and became too expensive to justify buying. “It’s always been at the top of my least-favourite companies and I would love if there was some class-action law- suit,” he said. Privacy Commissioner of Canada Philippe Dufresne said the investiga- tion will help the agency understand why the cyber incident happened and what must be done to prevent it from happening again. This is not the first time Ticket- master has faced a federal investiga- tion and litigation; in 2019 the company was ordered to pay $4.5 million to set- tle misleading pricing claims in online ticket sales after its 2010 amalgamation with events promoter and venue oper- ator Live Nation. Dufresne says data breaches have surged over the last decade and have increased in both their scale and com- plexity. ‘Painful memories’ for ex-tenant of North End landlord A FORMER tenant of the landlord who suddenly evicted residents of a North End apartment block earlier this month claims he was forced to leave his West Broadway residence after the same in- dividual subjected him to harassment and bullying. Christopher Reed says he filed a complaint with the Manitoba Human Rights Commission against 211 Furby Ltd., alleging its sole director, Kelly Vasas, threatened him with illegal evic- tion, shut off his power and removed his door during his time living at the prop- erty from 2016 to 2021. Vasas took ownership of 285 College Ave. the day before dozens of tenants were evicted without notice July 12. Days later, the province stepped in, pro- viding 24-hour security and “helping tenants return to their units immedi- ately.” Reed said he’s speaking out because watching the news about the residents at 285 College “brought back painful memories” of Vasas and his time living at 211 Furby St. “I had that God-awful feeling of be- ing displaced when I saw those other tenants,” he said. Reed, a member of Rolling River First Nation, has a disability as a result of post-traumatic stress disorder and said Vasas used racial slurs, threatened him and, on one occasion, removed his suite’s front door while he was away. By December 2021, the aggression escalated to the point where Reed al- leges the power to his suite was turned off on more than one occasion, includ- ing Christmas Eve. “I slept with my winter jacket on and several layers for warmth,” he said. “I was unable to use the washroom facili- ties in my suite or use the kitchen sink.” Vasas’s lawyer Gary Sinnock said his client had no comment. Reed said he believes Vasas was at- tempting a “renoviction” — where a landlord evicts tenants, renovates suites and hikes the rent — and he got help through Legal Aid Manitoba. Reed’s lawyer at the time, James Beddome, called the situation “easily the worst tenancy dispute” he had dealt with and said learning recently that Vasas was the landlord at 285 College Ave. wasn’t a shock. “It’s sad to say, but it wasn’t surpris- ing,” he said. Beddome said Reed is filing a human rights complaint, in part, because the residential tenancies branch claims the process is “paper-intensive” and doesn’t account for many tenant issues — it’s difficult to prove how much a per- son may have lost financially if they ha- ven’t kept records of furniture that was illegally thrown out or the impact an abusive landlord can have on a tenant, for example. “This (case) definitely stands out as particularly bad that way, because there were so many issues, and also, it also stands out in terms of lack of rem- edies,” he said. “Part of the challenge is the resi- dential tenancies branch cannot give awards for pain, suffering emotional distress.” MALAK ABAS Improvements in the inner city B ESIDE a community centre on Burrows Avenue, an excavator scoops up dirt at the future home of a new basketball court and playground. All three levels of government broke ground Wednesday morning at the Northwood Community Centre to mark the start of the recreational area, designed to provide inner-city kids with a sense of belonging. “The Northwood Community Cen- tre has always been a hub of activity, a place where families gather, friend- ships are formed and memories are made,” said Point Douglas Coun. Viv- ian Santos. “With these new enhance- ments we’re not only improving the physical landscape but also fostering an environment that promotes health, wellness and inclusivity.” Santos, newly appointed as the chair of community services, said the recreation area will offer a safe space for youth. Liberal MP Kevin Lamoureux (Winnipeg North) and NDP MLA Diljeet Brar (Burrows), who repre- sent the area, said the upgrades will help make the community stronger and healthier. The project, funded by Ottawa, the province and the city, will cost $602,000. It’s expected to be complet- ed by fall or spring next year. Santos said there are similar pro- jects in the works in other parts of the city, including the addition of splash pads to Tyndall Park. “We know that the inner city, espe- cially the downtown and inner city that surrounds the downtown, require some more significant investments,” Santos said. “As a kid and as a family growing up, a lot of these after-school activities are becoming quite expen- sive, so if the city can participate in that way with these new recreation- al amenities, that’s our way of sup- porting them.” Sel Burrows, a longtime activist and Point Douglas community leader, said while the addition of new recreation spaces is good, it’s just a drop in the bucket. There also needs to be a focus on providing funding for free pro- gramming, he said. Burrows used to be a recreation director and said he’s seen the city’s commitment to recreation in the in- ner city disappear over the years. He said leadership and organized activ- ities are crucial to keeping youth out of crime. “One of the things I learned over the years is kids vote with their feet. If there’s good programming, they’ll show up en masse,” Burrows said Wednesday. “One of the problems we have in the inner city is most of the community centres, they don’t have leadership that knows how to organ- ize programs that kids want to go to.” Community centres, school gyms and churches are “hopping” in com- munities outside the inner city, he said, adding free activities are a big draw. “It’s really important to have the fa- cilities, but there’s got to be activities. There’s got to be teams,” Burrows said. “There’s got to be things that kids can belong to and feel part of.” Burrows wants to see a profession- al recreational director in each in- ner-city community. “If you give kids something posi- tive to do, they will do that. If you don’t give kids something positive to do, they will do negative things,” said Burrows. jura.mcilraith@freepress.mb.ca Community activist says quality activities can help youth steer clear of trouble JURA MCILRAITH MIKAELA MACKENZIE / FREE PRESS (From left) Diljeet Brar, Kevin Lamoureux, Michelle Cooke, Vivian Santos, Marsha Missyabit and Lora Meseman break ground on a new basketball court and playground. ● TICKETS, CONTINUED ON B2 ● LANDLORD, CONTINUED ON B2 Judge opens door to class-action photo radar suit A JUDGE has given the green light for a proposed class-action lawsuit to pro- ceed against the provincial government and City of Winnipeg over photo-radar tickets. The province had tried to have the claim tossed out of court. In a 2022 statement of claim filed in the Court of King’s Bench, later amend- ed, William Acheson of Winnipeg al- leged the fine he paid after getting ticketed by photo radar should have been lower, due to the provincial legis- lation being applied in error from Nov. 20, 2017, to Nov. 12, 2021. His claim argues that thousands of other drivers caught speeding via photo radar should get partial refunds of their paid fines, amounting to approximate- ly $36 million in alleged overcharges when combined. Acheson filed the suit against the provincial government — which col- lects the revenue from photo enforce- ment tickets under the Highway Traffic Act and provides some to the city. A judge has yet to certify the lawsuit as a class action and it has not been heard fully in court. Acheson alleges that Manitoba and Winnipeg were not calculating the fines consistent with the governing regulation, with the charges accruing on each kilometre per hour “in excess of 10 km/h” over the speed limit, but were instead calculating the fines with the charges accruing on each kilometre per hour over the speed limit. The province brought a motion seek- ing to have the claim struck, arguing it is an abuse of court process and has no reasonable cause of action. Acheson filed a motion seeking to add the city as a defendant, which the city resisted for similar reasons as the prov- ince’s motion to strike, as well as argu- ing he was barred by the Public Offi- cers and Police Services acts, which grant immunity from doing so. In a written decision issued last week, King’s Bench Justice Gerald Chartier rejected the provincial government’s motion and allowed the addition of the city as a defendant, but struck out por- tions of Acheson’s claim that alleged the province made fraudulent misrepre- sentations and sought rectification. ERIK PINDERA ● PHOTO RADAR, CONTINUED ON B2 ;