Traditional espionage has abated but not gone away. Some countries still rely on their intelligence services to advance their interests. Other countries covertly try to influence and coerce migr communities in Canada. These foreign intelligence activities are intrusive and disruptive and are unacceptable to the government. Such activities are monitored closely, Mr. Speaker, and appropriate action is taken.
Several countries are active in trying to steal leading-edge technology from Canada.
CSIS has a mandate and a responsibility to investigate these matters. In a world driven by economic advantage, we do not expect to see such activities diminish and CSIS will continue to develop cooperative arrangements with other security and intelligence services in pursuit of our security objectives. The integrity of Canada's information infrastructure is a very real security concern as we become more dependent on information-based and computer controlled systems. Some individuals and states possess the ability to compromise computer systems and the information they hold. The Government is studying how best to assess and counter the potential threats to these infrastructures.