Jennifer Huynh - Ex-CIA director says Canada should be concerned about election interference

Summary: The former director of the CIA says Canada should be concerned about potential interference, Russian or otherwise, in the fast-approaching 2019 federal election. John Brennan stated in an exclusive interview with Evan Solomon on CTV's Question Period that he thinks any democracy these days needs to be concerned about foreign interference in their elections. He also stated that Canada, like other countries in Europe and throughout the world, need to be mindful that there are individuals in countries out there that are going to try to do them harm, including in their electoral systems. To prepare, Brennan said it’s important that Canada hardens its electoral system, identify its vulnerabilities, and protect critical infrastructure, something he described as a multi-year effort. This threat is something the federal government says it’s looking into, but so far has been light on details of how that will come together.

Synthesis: Democratic Institutions Minister Karina Gould has been mandated to work with the Minister of National Defence and the Minister of Public Safety to protect Canada’s electoral system from foreign threats and hackers. On February 27, the federal government announced hundreds of millions of dollars for new cybersecurity initiatives as part of the 2018 budget. As part of this, the government is putting in $7.1 million over five years for the Office of the Commissioner of Canada Elections to shore up Canadian electoral processes. Last year, the CSE issued a report that found that Canada’s democratic process is not immune to potential interference by outside actors. In the United States, over a dozen Russians have been indicted for allegedly executing a plot to meddle with the 2016 presidential election. The Russians have demonstrated that they are seeking to influence political events in other countries, through the manipulation of the digital environment, as well as putting out these personas that purport to be citizens of these countries. It was the view, and the unanimous view of the FBI, CIA, NSA, and Director of National Intelligence that there was incontrovertible proof that the Russians did interfere. This issue is almost synonymous with the fear of Communism back in the 1900s when there was a spreading rumor that Communist spies were in the country and were planning on interfering with the government.

Source: https://www.ctvnews.ca/mobile/politics/ex-cia-director-says-canada-should-be-concerned-about-election-interference-1.3826829