Canada not so innocent in cybercrime


(Graphic from Shutterstock)
Canadians like to think of themselves as the do-gooders of the world who join United Nations peacekeeping missions and are forced to protect their IT systems from the bad guys in Russia, North Korea and Nigeria.

But at the SC Congress conference in Toronto on Tuesday, security vendor Websense Inc. presented its latest study listing this country as an important – if inadvertent – host of cyberthreats.

Our sister publication ITBusiness.ca has a report on Websense’s presentation to the conference (see below), which includes advice from a company official.
Earlier this year we wrote about Websense’s international threat report (click here) from which it took its Canadian numbers.
 
The company said foreign companies and governments are increasingly setting up virtual bases in Canada for corporate espionage attacks.
RELATED CONTENT

Ironically – or logically – its Canada’s trustworthy reputation that has made it a target.

Canada ranks 10th on a list of countries that hosted malware in Q1 (the top four were the U.S., Russia, Germany and China). Not only have Canada’s cybercrime figures increased since last year, some of the jumps are alarming: For example, malware hosting on all Canadian Web sites has increased 25 per cent. The number of command and control servers here distributing malware soared 83 per cent.

What this means is more than ever IT departments in service providers as well as in organizations have to crack down on their risk assessments to ensure their servers aren’t responsible for this outbreak.

To get a copy of the Websense report click here

To read the the ITBusiness story click here.

 

Would you recommend this article?

Share

Thanks for taking the time to let us know what you think of this article!
We'd love to hear your opinion about this or any other story you read in our publication.


Jim Love, Chief Content Officer, IT World Canada

Featured Download

Howard Solomon
Howard Solomon
Currently a freelance writer, I'm the former editor of ITWorldCanada.com and Computing Canada. An IT journalist since 1997, I've written for several of ITWC's sister publications including ITBusiness.ca and Computer Dealer News. Before that I was a staff reporter at the Calgary Herald and the Brampton (Ont.) Daily Times. I can be reached at hsolomon [@] soloreporter.com

Featured Articles

Cybersecurity in 2024: Priorities and challenges for Canadian organizations 

By Derek Manky As predictions for 2024 point to the continued expansion...

Survey shows generative AI is a top priority for Canadian corporate leaders.

Leaders are devoting significant budget to generative AI for 2024 Canadian corporate...

Related Tech News

Tech Jobs

Our experienced team of journalists and bloggers bring you engaging in-depth interviews, videos and content targeted to IT professionals and line-of-business executives.

Tech Companies Hiring Right Now