A sign for the Government of Canada's Communications Security Establishment (CSE) is seen outside their headquarters in the east end of Ottawa on July 23, 2015. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick
OTTAWA – Canada’s cyberspy agency says countries like Russia and China are increasingly targeting non-profit and advocacy groups, as well as journalists and human rights activists.
The Communications Security Establishment is issuing the warning in a joint advisory with the United States, the United Kingdom, Japan, Estonia and Finland.
CSE’s Canadian Centre for Cyber Security says in a release there is a growing cyber security threat from state-sponsored actors who are targeting civil society, which is at “high risk.”
It says the advisory identifies the threat as “predominantly” coming from Russia, China, Iran and North Korea.
Targeted civil society groups also include academic, cultural and diaspora organizations, as well as individuals working to advance democracy.
The advisory warns threat actors are using increasingly personalized and subversive tactics, and devoting significant resources to researching their targets.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 14, 2024.
