Canada Can Become the Most Cyber Secure Country on the Planet

Increased investment in cybersecurity stands to benefit communities across Canada from both job creation and from improved Canadian cybersecurity accessibility and protection. In our Cyber. Right. Now. blog series, leaders in Canadian technology will give their insight into how businesses and government can better protect our cyberspace.

By John de Boer, Senior Director, Government Affairs and Public Policy, BlackBerry

Cybersecurity is one of the most pressing challenges facing Canada. For decades experts have warned us about the dangers of cyber attacks. Today, reports of cyber breaches have become disconcertingly routine.  According to the 2021 Edelman Trust Barometer, falling victim to a cyber attack ranks second behind job loss on the list of things Canadians worry about most. Additionally, 80 percent of Canadian CEOs say they see cybersecurity as a major threat to their company’s growth prospects.

Despite these challenges, Canada can address the ever growing set of cyber threats if it invests in cybersecurity at a level on par with its G7 peers. Recent reports have documented how Canadian governments and businesses have systematically underinvested in cybersecurity leaving their infrastructure, networks, and devices vulnerable to cyber attack. The time has come to invest in solutions to prevent cyber breaches before they wreak havoc.

Canada boasts world class cybersecurity capabilities and has the cybersecurity talent to be a global cyber power. In fact, some of the world’s top cybersecurity companies are Canadian, and BlackBerry is proud to be one of them. For instance, BlackBerry’s AI-driven cybersecurity solutions have been independently proven to prevent cyber attacks. In fact, BlackBerry prevented more than 165 million malware based cyber attacks last year with its prevention-first approach. This is why BlackBerry customers were safe from recent high-profile cyber attacks, including those by Darkside – the ransomware gang behind the Colonial Pipeline attack; Nobelium – the infamous threat group behind the SolarWinds attack; and REvil – the group behind the attacks on Kaseya, JBS and Acer. 

Yet, as a country, Canada risks falling behind. The OECD reports that Canada is one of the few countries where technology R&D investment is “stagnant,” investing only 1.5 percent of GDP and declining – while Canada’s competitors are investing billions to improve their cybersecurity capabilities. Canada needs to use all the levers at its disposal to help protect its infrastructure and businesses from cyber attacks and grow the economy in this digital age.

Cybersecurity is essential to sustaining innovation and securing trust in our data-driven world. It enables the digital economy, which represents 25 percent of global GDP (US $23 trillion) and 70 percent of new value creation. Cybersecurity protects Canadian businesses and boosts their ability to thrive in a data-driven economy. It also helps governments maintain essential services such as healthcare, energy and education.

Canada has the cyber tools and the talent to succeed. What we need is the will and the investment to make Canada one of the most cyber secure countries on the planet. To hear more about BlackBerry’s world class cyber solutions and services, join us at BlackBerry’s Security Summit 2021, which will take place on October 13, 2021. The event brings together industry experts and thought leaders from across the globe to discuss a