Spy agency chief says new powers would help stop cyberattacks before they happen
OTTAWA — The head of Canada’s cyberspy agency says new powers proposed by the Trudeau government would let her institution stop cyberattacks before they are launched — instead of having to sit back and wait for them to happen.
Communications Security Establishment chief Greta Bossenmaier made the comments to a parliamentary committee on Thursday as she revealed the agency has been working overtime to block attacks on federal networks.
“We’re now blocking over one billion malicious attempts to compromise government systems on average every day,” Bossenmaier said during an appearance alongside Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan. “One billion attempts.”
That equates to more than 11,500 every second, which the committee was told includes everything from minor pokes to assess the strength of a system, to malware, to dedicated hacking.