Inside CSE’s annual read on Canada’s cyber threats

Communications Security Establishment Canada (CSE) informs government decisions, defends critical systems, and counters threats to the country’s security and economy.

Specifically, CSE (now in its 80th year of service) provides intelligence on foreign signals, cyber security and information assurance, foreign cyber operations, and technical and operational assistance to federal partners. 

The Canadian Centre for Cyber Security is part of CSE, and as the public-facing agency, is positioned as the country’s technical authority on cyber security. 

The agency’s 2025-2026 Annual Report, released June 29, is a public tally of what it spent the year defending against. It’s also valuable for technology leaders responsible for critical systems in Canadian organizations.

CSE produced 3,976 foreign intelligence reports for the federal government, documenting foreign-based threats and global events. They also acted against 10 of the most significant ransomware groups that sought to harm Canada and its allies, and ran 1,772 supply chain risk assessments to strengthen cyber resilience within the government.

The Cyber Centre responded to more than 3,200 cyber security incidents affecting federal institutions and critical infrastructure over the year. It issued 25 alerts, 995 advisories, and more than 97,000 notifications through the 1,363 organizations subscribed to the National Cyber Threat Notification System (NCTNS).

CSE also pointed to new work on modern secure digital infrastructure, stronger cyber defence capabilities, artificial intelligence, and post-quantum cryptography, funded by Budget 2025’s investment in defence.

“As CSE marks 80 years of service to Canada, we continue to adapt to a security environment, with cyber threats growing in scale and complexity,” said Caroline Xavier, Chief of CSE.

Two key numbers from the report for Canadian organizations are 1,363 (the number of NCTNS subscribers) and 97,000 (how many alerts the system sent). 

The system is a free service available to Canadian organizations from any sector, and of any size, and can work in tandem with existing security measures. Subscribers receive notifications on potential system threats, including technical vulnerabilities, system compromises, and malware infections. 

For something free and built to catch potentially debilitating attacks, that’s a short subscriber list.

Final Shots

• CSE released its 2025-2026 Annual Report, tallying a year of foreign intelligence work, cyber defence, and action against major ransomware groups.
• The Cyber Centre responded to more than 3,200 incidents and sent over 97,000 threat notifications through its National Cyber Threat Notification System.
• The NCTNS is free and open to any Canadian organization, but only 1,363 have subscribed.