In 1989, the FBI uncovered a deep-cover Czech spy living as a hotel doorman in San Francisco. Instead of a dramatic arrest, agents befriended the New Age enthusiast, taking him out for steak and vodka to earn his trust as the Soviet bloc began to crumble. This quiet operation eventually helped the bureau unravel a much broader network of foreign operatives hiding in plain sight across America.

The fallout led to a standoff with the new post-communist Czech intelligence chief, who accidentally exposed his remaining spies by openly phoning them with orders to return to Europe. Surprisingly, many of these operatives had become so deeply Americanized, with some even coaching Little League baseball, that they refused to leave. Showing remarkable restraint, the U.S. government simply let them be, allowing upward of a dozen former adversaries to permanently live out their fake American lives.

This article appeared in the Politico Magazine on March 7, 2026

Full Story HERE - The Spies Who Loved Us

Analyzing the threat of Iranian sleeper cells in Canada

A string of violent attacks since the start of the Middle East war is raising concerns that Iranian sleeper cells could be operating in Canada. For The National, Idil Mussa talks to threat analysts and intelligence experts about what's real and what's speculation.

CBC Article by Idil Mussa, Aloysius Wond, and Albert Leung

The U.S.-Israel war with Iran has stoked fears that Tehran could activate dormant agents abroad to execute terror plots.

"I believe there’s sleeper cells all over the world," Ontario Premier Doug Ford said at a press conference on March 10. "As we know, they’re in the U.S. They’re in Canada."

According to U.S. media reports, American officials have intercepted encrypted communication believed to have come from Iran that could act as an "operational trigger" to activate "sleeper assets."

Days after the war began, Qatari authorities announced the arrest of 10 suspects allegedly assigned to spy on "vital and military facilities" in the Gulf nation for the Iranian regime.

But counterterrorism experts say the threat of Iranian sleeper cells is largely overstated.

Iran uses 'criminal proxies' not 'sleeper cells' in Canada, says ex-spy

Dan Stanton, director of the national security program at the University of Ottawa's Professional Development Institute who also worked for more than 30 years at CSIS, says the Iranian regime does not use ‘sleeper cells’ but rather ‘criminal proxies’ in Canada.

Sleeper cells are understood to be groups of covert agents who remain embedded within a population until they are directed to act — an idea that "often evokes the image of a Russian spy or terrorist living next door, laying low, blending in and waiting to be called upon to carry out an operation," writes Shannon Nash, a counterterrorism expert who has studied the topic extensively.

"This concept, and the fear of an enemy operating from within, is particularly jarring and plays on society’s perception of security."

Anxiety around sleeper cells tends to resurface whenever tensions escalate between the U.S. and Iran. But one Canadian security expert says their deployment is not the modus operandi of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) in Canada.

"They don't use them," said Dan Stanton, director of the national security program at the University of Ottawa's Professional Development Institute.

Stanton, who worked with the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) for more than 30 years, says the actual threat lies in Tehran's use of local criminal networks for targeted intimidation and violence.

"They don't use sleeper cells in that sense of deep cover agents. They use what we would call criminal proxies. These are people that would do surveillance, harass people or try to kill people."

Regime critics, activists targeted

Public figures, both in government positions and in the diaspora, who are critical of the Iranian regime are often subject to targeted campaigns or plots against their life.

Among them is former Canadian justice minister and outspoken critic of the Iranian regime Irwin Cotler. In 2024, the RCMP informed Cotler that they had foiled a plot by agents of Iran to kill him.

In a statement to CBC,  CSIS wrote that the intelligence agency works closely with "foreign partners and domestic law enforcement" to counter the actions of Iranian intelligence services and their proxies.

"In more than one case this involved detecting, investigating and disrupting potentially lethal threats against individuals in Canada," it wrote.

 

I was under direct assassination threat': Irwin Cotler explains alleged Iran plot

Former Canadian justice minister Irwin Cotler tells CBC chief correspondent Adrienne Arsenault about the alleged Iranian assassination plot that has had him under 24/7 police protection and why he thinks more needs to be done to stop the regime’s transnational repression.

In the U.S., two Russians were sentenced to 25 years in prison last October in connection with a murder-for-hire plot targeting Masih Alinejad, an Iranian American journalist and activist, on behalf of the government of Iran.

A few years earlier, the U.S. Justice Department announced charges against an Iranian national for attempting to arrange for the assassination of former national security advisor John Bolton on U.S. soil.

"All of us who were targeted by Iran should be worried, but so should other people now that this attack has begun," said Bolton, whose security detail was removed in January 2025.

"It was obviously wrong for Trump to take away the protection that was afforded — not just to me but to several other former senior officials — because the threat arose from what we did as part of our official duties," Bolton told CBC News in an interview.

Former national security advisor John Bolton, centre, was provided with a security detail following an Iranian plot to hire people to assassinate him in what appeared to be retaliation for the killing of IRGC commander Qasem Soleimani in 2020. The protection was removed by U.S. President Donald Trump in January 2025.

Thomas Juneau, who teaches at the University of Ottawa’s Graduate School of Public and International Affairs, says the IRGC targets the families of Iranian dissidents as a way to punish or silence them.

"There have been multiple documented cases … parents, siblings, close friends, other family members who are still in Iran who will be aggressively interrogated by intelligence services," said Juneau.

"And in more extreme cases, [they] will be physically beaten, tortured or [suffer] other kinds of negative consequences, such as financial assets frozen, careers suspended, jobs lost."

Lone wolf attacks most likely

Intelligence experts stressed that lone wolves with a range of possible motives and affiliations are more likely to be behind acts of violence in Canada than deep-cover Iranian agents.

"The Iranian regime, we should also remember, is part of a political ideology," said political violence and terrorism researcher Broderick McDonald. "Some of the younger members of the extreme wings of the Iranian IRGC ideology have, in some cases, taken actions on their own."

CSIS likewise told CBC the mostly likely scenario for a "violent extremist attack" involves "a lone actor whose intent to mobilize is unknown to authorities" and who "could be inspired by the conflict in the Middle East."

There have been numerous violent incidents in the U.S. since the war began on Feb. 28, including a synagogue attack in Michigan and a shooting in Austin, Texas, where a gunman wearing Iranian-flag-themed clothing killed two and injured 14.

In Canada, a gym owned by an Iranian Canadian activist in Thornhill, Ont., that displayed pre-revolutionary Iranian flags was shot at 17 times after a large anti-regime demonstration.

Intelligence experts stressed that lone wolves with a range of possible motives and affiliations are more likely to be behind acts of violence in Canada than deep-cover Iranian agents.

"The Iranian regime, we should also remember, is part of a political ideology," said political violence and terrorism researcher Broderick McDonald. "Some of the younger members of the extreme wings of the Iranian IRGC ideology have, in some cases, taken actions on their own."

CSIS likewise told CBC the mostly likely scenario for a "violent extremist attack" involves "a lone actor whose intent to mobilize is unknown to authorities" and who "could be inspired by the conflict in the Middle East."

There have been numerous violent incidents in the U.S. since the war began on Feb. 28, including a synagogue attack in Michigan and a shooting in Austin, Texas, where a gunman wearing Iranian-flag-themed clothing killed two and injured 14.

In Canada, a gym owned by an Iranian Canadian activist in Thornhill, Ont., that displayed pre-revolutionary Iranian flags was shot at 17 times after a large anti-regime demonstration.

Separately, the U.S. consulate in Toronto was the target of gunfire in what police are calling a "national security incident."

"I do think the terrorist threat is worldwide, but especially in North America and Europe," said Bolton.

"The whole point of terror is to strike people who aren't necessarily involved directly as adversaries, to show that consequences of being unkind to the terrorist power can be fatal. So terrorism doesn't necessarily have to be directed only at opponents of the regime in Tehran."

Juneau cautions against drawing conclusions about the precise motives and actors behind these incidents.

"In some of the more recent cases, there's still not enough information publicly available to come to a definitive conclusion."

Risk of sensationalization

McDonald says the flood of false or misleading information about the war online is causing real-world confusion and harm.

"It's one of the most polluted information environments that I've ever seen within a conflict," he said. "I think we have to look at the war and sleeper cells in that context."

Political violence and terrorism researcher Broderick McDonald says while it’s important to not overlook legitimate intelligence threats from the Iranian regime, 'sensational' reporting and fearmongering are dangerous and play into the 'escalation narrative' of the war.

McDonald says it's important to strike a balance of acknowledging significant threats while remaining highly "aware of the broader information environment." He also advised caution when engaging with rhetoric about threats that could stoke "Hollywood-style fears," which "war hawks" in the U.S. and Israel can use to escalate the war.

"It's a potent tool to also cultivate fear in the United States. And we should, I think, avoid the sensationalization of it."

Are Canadians safe?

McDonald says Canada has a significant strategic advantage when it comes to identifying possible threats.

"We have the Five Eyes intelligence-sharing network, so not just the United States sharing intelligence with us, but also our partners in the U.K., Australia, New Zealand, and that significantly helps us to detect threats before they even arrive on our shores."

Additionally, McDonald says Canada's historically bipartisan commitment to staying out of "wars of choice" further shields the nation from foreign retaliation.

"Both governments, Conservative and Liberal, have pursued this kind of stance. And I think that insulates us from the threats of Iran escalating against Canada."

CSIS said it is "focused on ensuring continued vigilance to ensure the safety and security of Canada and all Canadians" and has increased its efforts around "potential Iranian state-directed and violent extremist activity."

Middle East analyst Thomas Juneau explains that Iran intimidates and pressures Iranian Canadians with the goal of sowing fear among them that they could be surveilled, thereby repressing dissent abroad.

Stanton says it is important to remember that Canada is "not the epicentre of espionage," nor would it be a high-priority target for a regime struggling to survive.

Regardless of whether Iranian sleeper cells are active in Canada, the regime’s attempts to target and threaten Iranian Canadians are "absolutely" real, says Juneau.

The IRGC does not have the resources to surveil every member of the diaspora, but Juneau says "the simple fact that it is a possibility — and that they know it's a possibility — sows fear."

"That's how transnational repression works," he said. "If anything, the problem is not its exaggeration. The problem is its neglect by the Canadian government not doing enough to protect Iranian Canadians."

This unclassified extract from the Central Intelligence Agency's premier journal, Studies in Intelligence (Vol. 70, No. 1, March 2026), provides a rare look into how the Agency is preparing for a future saturated by artificial intelligence. While the publication is primarily designed for US government officials, these curated articles offer a masterclass in modern tradecraft for anyone interested in the intersection of national security and emerging technology. The core message is clear: while AI will fundamentally transform how the CIA spots, recruits, and handles assets, the "human touch" of a Case Officer (CO) is more valuable than ever in an era of deepfakes and digital noise.

The journal highlights that the CIA’s Center for the Study of Intelligence is aggressively pursuing a baseline of AI training for all officers in the field. Key insights include the use of AI for real-time "persuasion guidance" during meetings and the deployment of "AI officers" to vet walk-ins with 98% accuracy. However, the journal balances this technical optimism with a grounded warning—since AI can be used to scale surveillance and fabrication, the Agency must double down on "non-electronic" traditional tradecraft like dead drops and brush passes to ensure secure, high-trust communication.

Click Here for the Full Report

In the fall of 2025, “The Panel” received an invitation from Greg Spievak and Robert Mendoza of Reboot Communications to speak at the March 2026 Victoria International Privacy & Security Summit.  This was the Summit’s 28th year as an international forum with over 600 participants, of which 60 were university students.  It is a highly respected conference valued by many returning sponsors and participants.  

Members read the complete report HERE!

Iwona Mooney CSIS DDG (Ret.)

To have or not to have?  In recent years there has been much speculation on the pros and cons of whether Canada should have a separate Foreign Intelligence organization, or should this responsibility be allocated to the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS), or perhaps housed within another government ministry.  As a former intelligence professional with a passion for current events, international politics, I try to stay atop relevant information as it becomes available. I use the word “try”.  So many weigh in with opinions and arguments, whether it be an informed source or a member of the public who feels they have the solution.  I am from neither camp. I am writing from “my heart”, from experience, and from years of reading about and researching intelligence agencies, as well as following ongoing intelligence issues as impacted and/or influenced by various global conflicts.

Even though espionage is considered to be the second-oldest profession in the world, today in 2025, no intelligence organization can function using traditional spy craft of the 1900s.  Post-World War II, the race for the atomic bomb, the heroic efforts of Igor Gouzenko to get “the West” to come to grip with the true realties of the now former U.S.S.R., and the devastating work of the Cambridge Five brought to a head the need to rethink how an intelligence entity deals with new security threats. The end of the Cold War era accelerated security intelligence priorities in areas unheard of before. Terrorism, international and domestic, is probably what comes to mind.  Yet there are so many new variants of threats that have emerged and will continue to evolve.  Cyber threats to governments, businesses and to individuals, are rampant.  Transnational repression is a type of foreign interference that can be subtle ranging to violence.  Regional conflicts based on religious and/or ethnic issues, which have been around for eons, do not seem to wane.  They just move around the globe with waves of migration from continent to continent.  And there are other issues, such as climate change, sabotage and counter proliferation.

What has changed?  Attitudes, younger generations dissatisfaction with the current situation, religious factions having greater influences over the less fortunate, the concentration of wealth in the hands of a few with the exponential rise of the oligarch / billionaire category.  How does this all fit into the dialogue of whether Canada should or should not have its own separate foreign intelligence agency?

In 1984, CSIS was established primarily as a defensive intelligence organization to protect Canada’s national security interests as mandated by The CSIS Act.  It collects information through human interaction, ergo – HUMINT – human intelligence.  Its sister organization, the Communications Security Establishment (CSE) is SIGINT-based, signals intelligence obtained through “ears in the skies”.  Both organizations operate within Canada’s borders, but, yes, there is a BUT.  These borders are a hindrance of sorts.  Canada has been relying on the sharing of intelligence through its partnership within the Five Eyes alliance – United Kingdom, United States, Australia and New Zealand, as well as other countries.  Some do have foreign intelligence agency capabilities; others deal with such collections as their laws allow.  Recent events have strained some of these partnerships, putting Canada at a disadvantage. 

The CSIS Act has been amended, the last being Bill C-70 (June 2024) to align its powers better to deal with the increase in, and changes within the current threat environment.  However, it did not provide CSIS with a distinct, separate “foreign intelligence capability” that would allow intelligence operatives to work abroad.  Federal court warrants can provide CSIS with the authority to conduct specific investigations abroad.  These changes are a step in the right direction.

In 2003 the former Liberal Member of Parliament (Nepean) David Pratt tabled a private member’s bill – C-409, An Act to establish the Canadian Foreign intelligence Agency.  As with the majority of private members’ bills, it did not pass. The idea was put forth and continues to have supporters and detractors.  The security intelligence environment is an ever-evolving one and if Canada is to participate in a level playing field, perhaps the time has come for serious consideration to be given to the conundrum of whether Canada should or should not have a foreign intelligence agency of its own. 

On the one hand, increasing substantially the funds to CSIS that would allow it to develop a “Foreign Intelligence Branch” within its organizational structure would seem to be the easier path to take.  However, it begs the question of sustainability, of integrating it into the strategic operational environment without jeopardizing the “agents” who would choose to work abroad.  Would these agents rotate in/out of the Service in order to “round” out their careers?  Where would their operational mandates emanate from?  These are just a few of the challenges that CSIS would face should it be given the foreign intelligence agency responsibility. 

There are sound reasons why our allies have separate foreign intelligence services:  The British have MI6, the Americans the CIA, Israel the Mossad, Germany the BND, France the DGSE, Australia the ASIS.  Then there is Russia with the SVR, and China the MSS. Some are smaller in stature and others, like the CIA or MI6 are legendary in their own right. 

Canada needs to focus on the WHY there may be need to have a permanent, separate foreign intelligence agency.  Will it enhance its stature within the intelligence community?  Will it allow Canada to focus specifically on those areas abroad where information cannot be otherwise gathered than through deploying agents?  And how long will it take Canada to get such an agency up and running at full speed.  Certainly, it is not an overnight exercise.  Probably more like five if not more years before it would be fully operational.  Does Canada have an appropriate human resources pool to hire suitable candidates, or does the initial round come from within CSIS and other Canadian intelligence-related entities?  Once the WHY is answered then the rest should fall into place.  A bill to enact a Canadian Foreign Intelligence Agency is already drafted, albeit would require updating.  Changes in today’s world security environment show that Canada needs to be part of the playing field, not just a spectator on the sidelines.  Some of these changes impact directly on Canada and going to the source of the “threat” to try and mitigate it may be the only way Canada will be able to deal with said threat.  Our partners may not be of much assistance if they do not have a vested interest.  To quote Lewis Carroll’s opening line in his poem, The Walrus and the Carpenter - “The time has come,” the Walrus said, “to talk of many things” – to have or not to have a separate foreign intelligence entity.  

Iwona Mooney
CSIS DDG (Ret.)

The Canadian Association for Security and Intelligence Studies (CASIS) announces the 5^th annual competition for the CASIS Essay Prize, supported by the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS). Prizes will be awarded for the best undergraduate and graduate papers on a subject dealing with intelligence or on a matter related to Canada’s broad national security interests.

The Award

 One graduate and one undergraduate paper will be awarded. The graduate prize is $2500, while the undergraduate prize is $1000. Both winners will be invited to deliver their papers at a CASIS event in 2026, and both papers will be published on-line through the CASIS website.

Eligibility Criteria

 The competition is open to undergraduate or graduate students enrolled at a Canadian university or college, or any Canadian student enrolled at a university or college outside of Canada. Papers submitted as part of a course requirement and papers specifically designed for this contest are welcome. Submissions can be in English or French. Only one paper per candidate will be accepted for the competition.

Topics

Essays must address some dimension of intelligence, security, or law enforcement issues in any time period and in any country. Submissions can be from any Humanities or Social Sciences discipline, inter-disciplinary programmes, or law school. Essays touching on the following topics are encouraged, but will not receive preferential grading:

• Emerging and/or priority domestic terrorism threats in Canada over the next five years
• Polar research and national security
• Energy security: opportunities and threats
• Biotechnology, health sciences, and national security

Submission

Undergraduate essays cannot exceed 30 pages including footnotes. Graduate papers cannot exceed 40 pages including notes. Submissions should be sent by email with a clear subject heading reading “CASIS-CSIS Prize”, graduate or undergraduate level, and the author’s last name: i.e. CASIS-CSIS Prize – undergraduate – Doe, Jane.

Submissions must be in Microsoft Word, 12-point font, double spaced, and must include a full title page with the author's name, institution, academic programme, and contact information. Proof of registration at a University in Canada or abroad (transcript or certification) is required, and proof of citizenship may be required for students studying outside of Canada. Send an electronic copy of the paper to:

Dr. Arne Kislenko
Department of History
Toronto Metropolitan University
350 Victoria Street
Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5B 2K3
(416) 979-5000 ext. 556206

akislenk@torontomu.ca

The deadline for submissions is Monday, June 1, 2026.

Adjudication

All submissions will be adjudicated by a panel comprised of academics and representatives of the CSIS Academic Outreach & Stakeholder Engagement (AOSE) program. The review process will commence in June 2026, with results announced via email in August.

About CASIS

CASIS is a non-partisan, voluntary association established in 1985. Its principal purpose is to provide informed debate in Canada on security and intelligence issues. Membership is open and includes academics, concerned citizens, government officials, journalists, lawyers, students, as well as former intelligence officers.

About CSIS AOSE

The Academic Outreach & Stakeholder Engagement program is an important bridge linking CSIS to Canadians. The program engages with stakeholders and thought leaders on national security issues from across Canada and around the world to ensure that CSIS’ work is informed by a broad and diverse spectrum of voices and perspectives.

Nigel Farage’s party is “very interested” in taking up the intelligence agency’s offer to help with national security checks.

A Reform UK spokesman said: “If this offer comes to fruition, we would be very interested in taking the MI5 up on it. 

Politico Magazine
March 11, 2026 4:00 am CET
By Mason Boycott-Owen

LONDON — Nigel Farage’s Reform UK has welcomed an offer from MI5 to help political parties vet their election candidates as hostile states try to infiltrate British democracy.

Last month MI5 — Britain’s domestic intelligence agency — said it would help political parties with candidate checks for potential foreign interference risks.

A Reform spokesman told POLITICO the party would be “very interested” in taking up the offer, if it “comes to fruition.”

Ken McCallum, the director general of MI5, made the offer at a cross-party briefing with U.K. political parties last month, alongside Security Minister Dan Jarvis, three people with knowledge of the meeting told POLITICO.

The offer from McCallum is part of a wider effort by the U.K. government and security services to shore up British democracy amid a wave of espionage activity from hostile states.

In the past six months, several foreign and U.K.-born citizens have been arrested on suspicion of working for Iran, Russia and China.

Earlier this month three former Labour officials, including the husband of a sitting Labour MP and former candidate for North Wales police and crime commissioner, were arrested by counter-terrorism police on suspicion of spying for China.

Last year, the former Reform UK leader in Wales Nathan Gill was jailed for accepting bribes to make pro-Russian statements while he was a member of the EU parliament for Reform’s precursor Brexit Party.

Britain’s political parties have no standardized system for vetting those who want to become MPs. Each party has its own internal, and in some cases, external processes for probity checks.

Reform leader Nigel Farage in 2024 blamed a “reputable vetting company” for oversights in helping sift its candidates ahead of the general election after one praised Hitler and backed Russia’s war in Ukraine. He apologized, adding: “We have been stitched up politically and that’s given us problems.”

MI5’s role in vetting is limited to its own staff and certain levels of security clearance for specific government and official roles in Whitehall. Its offer to candidates is expected to be limited to helping parties assess foreign interference risks, rather than any official security clearance.

POLITICO asked the six main Westminster parties if they will take MI5 up on its offer to assist in their vetting processes. The ruling Labour Party, the Conservatives, the Greens and the Liberal Democrats all declined to comment. The Scottish National Party did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The offer from Ken McCallum is part of a wider effort by the U.K. government and security services to shore up British democracy amid a wave of espionage activity from hostile states.

A Reform UK spokesman said: “If this offer comes to fruition, we would be very interested in taking the MI5 up on it. 

“We must do all we can to stamp out foreign interference in our politics. We have seen just last week with the Labour China spy scandal just how deeply embedded this issue is.”

The government unveiled its Counter Political Interference and Espionage Action Plan last November. It includes an elections bill, which is currently making its way through parliament. An independent review into financial interference in U.K. democracy is examining the use of cryptocurrency. Ministers are also considering bringing in proscription-like powers to disrupt proxies and state-backed terror groups as part of the plan.

A Government spokesperson said: “The Security Minister is coordinating an action plan to ensure we’re doing all we can to safeguard our democracy, including working directly with political parties to help them detect and deter interference and espionage.

“We’re also strengthening rules on political funding, rolling out security advice for election candidates, and working with professional networking sites and think tanks to make them a more hostile operating environment for foreign agents.”

Christo Grozev, Roman Dobrokhotov, Michael Weiss, Fidelius Schmid,
Nikolai Antoniadis
THE INSIDER In collaboration with Der Spiegel.

Center 795, which emerged after the start of Russia's full-scale war in Ukraine and comprises elite units from the GRU and FSB, was established as a top-secret and fully autonomous entity designed to carry out the most critical operations, ranging from military missions in Ukraine to political assassinations and abductions abroad."

The mainstream media has been stating that a phishing campaign where scammers are pretending to be Hydro-Québec to commit fraud is "associated with the Iranian state."

While it makes a better headline given the current conflict with Iran, at this time, it appears to be a significant stretch to tie this specific incident to the Iranian government.

In the Hydro-Québec case, the Iranian link is being made because researchers traced the scam to Cloudzy infrastructure. What isn't being highlighted is that Cloudzy has been used by over a dozen other state-sponsored actors (including China, Russia, and North Korea) and countless criminal bad actors. This is due to the fact that the company only requires an email for signup and accepts cryptocurrency, enabling total anonymity.

While Cloudzy's CEO has ties to Iran and the Iranian state has likely used its infrastructure in the past, this doesn't automatically make all activity from this dubious network state-sponsored. Cloudzy is widely known in the cybersecurity community as a "Command-and-Control Provider" (C2P) that deliberately facilitates global ransomware, phishing, and financial fraud by offering anonymous hosting with virtually no oversight or response to abuse complaints.

True Iranian state-sponsored actors like Handala and Nasir Security are engaging in destructive and disruptive cyberattacks, such as widespread data wiping and infrastructure sabotage, while this incident aligns far more closely with simple criminal fraud.

https://cyberagroup.com/

CBC News - Peter Zimonjic Mar 12, 2026

Minister of Public Safety Gary Anandasangaree and Justice Minister Sean Fraser say newly introduced lawful access legislation will help police and security services track and identify people suspected of criminality and threats to national security.

The Liberal government has introduced a new lawful access bill that it says will help police and security services track and identify people who may be using tools like social media or artificial intelligence to commit crimes or threaten national security.

This legislation is the government's most recent crack at broadening the access law enforcement agencies have after Bill C-2, introduced last spring, raised concerns with civil liberties groups that the powers went too far.

Minister of Public Safety Gary Anandasangaree said the reforms in the bill will bring the country's lawful access laws up to date, which he said are currently "woefully behind" Canada's allies. 

"Bill C-22 balances the needs of law enforcement with the privacy and civil rights that Canadians demand," he said on Thursday.

"It is not about surveillance of Canadians going on about their daily lives. It is about keeping Canadians safe in the online space."

In a technical briefing, government officials explained that Bill C-22 doesn't give police or the security services access to people's browsing or private social media history, their messages or emails, but is limited to information that identifies who and where they are.

It will allow security services to compel telecoms like Bell and Rogers to provide them with a yes or no answer when asked if a suspected criminal uses their services. 

If police want to get more information, such as a suspect's email address, phone number or home address, they must convince a court that a crime has taken place, or will take place, in order to get a warrant.

Framework for social media platforms

The legislation also formalizes how Canadian law enforcement make information requests to foreign social media companies like Meta and artificial intelligence firms like OpenAI, which created ChatGPT.

The process does not compel AI or social media companies to share information identifying subscribers, but it provides a legal framework that government officials explained encourages these companies to work with police and security services.

The legislation also does not require AI or social media companies to report suspicious or worrying activity to Canadian authorities.

The type of information law enforcement would be looking for from these companies include IP addresses of suspects who are using false identities on social media to commit crimes, the officials said.

Tracking suspects' cellphones

The legislation also gives the government the power to introduce regulations requiring "core providers" — a term that will be defined later through consultations but will include telecoms, satellite providers and "others" — to maintain the capacity to geographically track the users of its products and services.

According to the legislation, the definition of a device broadly includes computer programs on that device which cause "the computer system to perform a function."

The government says that while the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) can already get a warrant to track a suspect's mobile phone location, the mobile service provider is not required to track where all its users are.

Once that tracking capability is mandatory, Canada's security services would be able to make a legal request to access that software in order to investigate criminals and threats to national security.

Officials said that if CSIS wanted to track a terror suspect, for example, its agents are often forced to physically track them in person at great expense to the federal government, limiting how many operations they can undertake. 

The changes, officials say, would also help emergency services locate people who are injured or lost more quickly than trying to triangulate them using cellphone towers.

Minister of Justice Sean Fraser said law enforcement needs the capacity to unearth who is behind an account that is being used to threaten public safety.

"This is going to help us catch up with most of our allies across the world, but most importantly it's going to help the officers on the front line do more to keep communities safe," Fraser said.

The legislation also gives the minister of public safety the power to issue a ministerial order compelling an electronic service provider, whether a core provider or not, to develop specific capabilities.

A background document explained that provision has been included to give ministers the ability, when needed, to respond to new threats or technologies. In order to issue an order it must first be approved by the intelligence commissioner.

Companies that refuse to conform to ministerial orders could be fined or face "administrative penalties," the document says.

The rocky road to Bill C-22

When the Liberal government introduced Bill C-2, it contained a suite of measures that included tightening the asylum and immigration system, allowing mail to be searched and spending $1 billion on border security.

When more than 300 civil society organizations called on the Liberals to withdraw the bill, saying it threatened the freedom and privacy of all Canadians,the Liberals reintroduced some of its provisions under Bill C-12. That bill is now at third reading in the Senate.

Bill C-2 remains stuck at second reading in the House of Commons.