Canadian Institute for Cybersecurity

10/14/2026

🔎 Meet the people shaping the future of cybersecurity.

Cybersecurity is evolving fast, but what does its future look like to the people working in the field every day?

Introducing Internal Insider Series: Cybersecurity Awareness Month Edition — a new video series featuring the people behind the research, development, and innovation happening at the Canadian Institute for Cybersecurity.

For our first episode, we’re joined by Griffin Higgins, a PhD student and cybersecurity software developer at CIC.
From his journey in cybersecurity to his perspective on where the industry is heading, Griffin shares his experience from inside the field and reflects on what the future may hold.

🎥 Watch Episode 1 on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zlf1z6kRd2I&t=3s

Throughout Cybersecurity Awareness Month, we’ll be bringing you more conversations with the people behind CIC’s work, their journeys, perspectives, and thoughts on the future of cybersecurity.
Because understanding cybersecurity also means understanding the people who are shaping it.

10/08/2026

Research happens when ideas leave the lab and enter the conversation. 🔎

We had some great conversations at the UNB Research Centre & Institute Showcase during Research Celebration Week, where CADC had the opportunity to showcase our work in cyber attribution and connect with researchers, students, partners and members of the UNB community.

Our booth offered an opportunity to introduce CADC’s work, share how we are approaching the challenge of understanding, investigating and attributing malicious cyber activity, and connect with people interested in where cybersecurity research can go next.

From cyber threat intelligence and attacker profiling to data-driven attribution research, CADC is working to build capabilities that can help Canada better understand the people and infrastructure behind cyber threats.

Thank you to everyone who stopped by, asked questions, shared ideas and took the time to learn more about CADC. These conversations are an important part of turning research into collaboration and real-world impact.
Research. Collaboration. Cybersecurity. Impact.

10/05/2026

🍁 In April 2026, a Quebec business was in the middle of a high-value commercial transaction. The email conversation looked normal.The names were familiar. The instructions made sense. The payment details appeared to come from people the business already trusted. So the transaction moved forward. First, one wire transfer was authorized. Then another. Nothing about the exchange looked obviously suspicious.

But behind the emails, fraudsters had inserted themselves into the conversation. They were impersonating legitimate contacts, manipulating the communication, and quietly redirecting the payments.Shortly afterward, financial institutions noticed something was wrong with the beneficiary account information.That was when the fraud was uncovered.

The incident was reported quickly to the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre, and through coordination with financial institutions and investigative partners, approximately $3.5 million CAD was recovered.

The story could easily have ended very differently.And that is exactly why it matters during Cyber Security Awareness Month.Cyber threats do not always arrive as an obvious malicious attachment or a badly written email. Sometimes, they appear inside a conversation you already trust.
A familiar name.
A routine request.
A small change to payment information.
That is where awareness becomes a security control.Before acting on a financial request, especially when banking information changes, verify it through a separate and trusted channel. A quick phone call or second confirmation can be the difference between a normal business transaction and a major loss.

In 2025 alone, reported spear-phishing losses in Canada exceeded $68 million, and in just the first three months of 2026, Canadians had already reported nearly $31 million in related losses.

Cybersecurity is not only about the technology protecting the system.Sometimes, it is about the person who notices that one small detail does not feel right.

This October, for Cyber Security Awareness Month, were reminded that cybersecurity is not only about sophisticated technology.Its also about awareness, judgement, and the decisions we make when something doesnt quite feel right.Because sometimes, one moment of awareness can prevent millions in losses.

🛡️ Your best defence is you.

Learn more about Cyber Security Awareness Month and practical ways to stay safer online through https://www.getcybersafe.gc.ca/en/cyber-security-awareness-month

Read more from: https://antifraudcentre-centreantifraude.ca/news-nouvelles/2026/2026-05-13-eng.htm

09/30/2026

🧡 National Day for Truth and Reconciliation | September 30

Today, we pause to honour the children who never returned home from residential schools, the Survivors, their families, and Indigenous communities, and to recognize the lasting impacts of the residential school system.

September 30 marks both the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation and Orange Shirt Day. The federal statutory holiday was established in response to Call to Action 80 of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada, while Orange Shirt Day reminds us that Every Child Matters.

At the Canadian Institute for Cybersecurity, we recognize this day as an opportunity to listen, learn, reflect, and deepen our understanding of the history and experiences of Indigenous Peoples in Canada.

We encourage our community to take time to learn from Indigenous voices and engage with the resources, stories, and conversations that contribute to the ongoing journey of truth and reconciliation.

🧡 Every Child Matters.

09/29/2026

🔐 Cybersecurity is often invisible — until the moment it isn’t.

One click.
One convincing message.
One compromised account.
One vulnerability in a connected system.

And suddenly, something we barely thought about becomes impossible to ignore.

October is Cyber Security Awareness Month, and this year’s Canadian theme — “Your best defence is you” — is an important reminder that technology is only part of the equation.

As AI changes how cyber threats are created, scaled and disguised, building a safer digital world requires more than stronger tools. It requires awareness, research, collaboration, resilient systems. and people who know when something doesn’t look right.

At the Canadian Institute for Cybersecurity (CIC), cybersecurity is something we think about every day: from AI-driven threat detection and critical infrastructure security to cyber threat intelligence, privacy, IoT security and the technologies shaping what comes next.

This October, we’re celebrating the researchers, professionals, students and everyday users who all have a role to play in making our digital world safer.
Because cybersecurity isn’t just about defending systems.
It’s about protecting the people who depend on them.

Want to take one more step toward being cyber safe?
The Government of Canada’s Get Cyber Safe initiative offers practical guidance and resources to help Canadians protect their accounts, devices and information, recognize evolving threats, and build stronger online habits.

Read more: https://www.getcybersafe.gc.ca/en/cyber-security-awareness-month

🛡️ Your best defence is you.

Cybersecurity awareness shouldn’t end when October does. Small habits today can make a meaningful difference tomorrow.

Cyber Security Awareness Month (Cyber Month) is an internationally recognized campaign held each October to help the public learn more about the importance of cyber security. The campaign helps Canadians stay secure online by teaching them simple steps to protect themselves and their devices.

09/15/2026

🏆 Celebrating the PST Cybersecurity Summit 2026 Poster Competition Winners!

Research was a major part of this year’s PST Cybersecurity Summit, with researchers showcasing innovative work across cybersecurity, AI, and emerging technologies.
We’re excited to recognize the winners of the PST Cybersecurity Summit 2026 Poster Competition:

🥇 1st Place
Evaluating Quantum Readiness in Hardware Security Modules: Risk Assessment and Vendor Comparison
Vahid Maleki Raee, Vikas Chouhan, Amir Hassanpour Zarghani, Michael Odartei Mills, Isaac Socrates Mensah, Griffin Higgins, and Ali Ghorbani

🥈 2nd Place – Tie
Security Threat Modeling for Emerging AI-Agent Protocols
Zeynab Anbiaee, Mahdi Rabbani, Ali Ghorbani, and Sajjad Dadkhah

🥈 2nd Place – Tie
From Cryptographic Discovery to a Post-Quantum Migration Roadmap
Amir Hassanpour, Vikas Chouhan, and Ali Ghorbani

🥉 3rd Place
QuantumPnC: A Post-Quantum Anonymous Authentication Protocol for ISO 15118 Plug-and-Charge
Nethmi Hettiarachchi, Kalikinkar Mandal, and Saqib Hakak

👏 Congratulations to all of our winners!

From evaluating the quantum readiness of today's security infrastructure and preparing organizations for post-quantum migration, to securing emerging AI-agent protocols and the future of EV charging, these projects reflect the range of cybersecurity challenges researchers are working to address.
A big thank you as well to all researchers who participated in the Poster Competition, shared their work, and contributed to the research conversations throughout the Summit.

We’re proud to have provided a space for researchers to showcase their ideas, connect with the cybersecurity community, and contribute to conversations shaping the future of the field.

Link to the Summit's gallery 👉 https://cybersecuritysummit.pstnet.ca/gallery

09/10/2026

🌏 Strengthening Cybersecurity Through International Collaboration | CIC–NICT Workshop

Cybersecurity challenges cross borders; and so does the research needed to address them.

The Canadian Institute for Cybersecurity (CIC) was pleased to continue its strong research relationship with Japan’s National Institute of Information and Communications Technology (NICT) through our recent joint workshop.

The collaboration brings together complementary expertise in applied cybersecurity, AI-driven threat detection, IoT security, large-scale cybersecurity datasets, network monitoring, and threat intelligence. Through joint research activities and knowledge exchange, CIC and NICT are working to better understand emerging cyber threats and advance practical, data-driven solutions with international impact.

Workshops like this create valuable opportunities for researchers to exchange ideas, discuss ongoing work, identify new areas for collaboration, and strengthen the connections behind long-term research partnerships.
We extend our sincere thanks to Dr. Tao Ban for his continued collaboration and contributions, as well as to all CIC and NICT researchers and participants who shared their expertise, perspectives, and ideas throughout the workshop.

We look forward to continuing this partnership and advancing cybersecurity research together across borders🤝.

09/03/2026

🎥 PST 2026 Speaker Spotlight | Joe Martinez

Threats don’t distinguish between the physical and digital worlds. So why should security?

At the PST Cybersecurity Summit 2026, Joe Martinez, Executive Vice President & Chief Security Officer at Scotiabank, explored why modern organizations need to rethink security as one connected ecosystem.

In his presentation, “Connected Threats Demand Connected Security,” Joe discusses the increasingly blurred boundaries between physical security and cybersecurity, the growing influence of AI, and why an integrated security model is becoming essential to protecting modern enterprises.

He also explores the evolving role of the Chief Security Officer in Canada and what integrated security means for resilience, customer trust, and an organization’s ability to anticipate and respond to emerging risks.

▶️ Watch the full presentation on the CIC YouTube channel:

https://youtu.be/6qx-qN7KyZo

Over the coming days, we’ll be sharing more presentations and insights from the leaders who joined us at PST Cybersecurity Summit 2026. Stay tuned!

08/31/2026

🍁Federal investment supports cybersecurity collaboration and innovation in Atlantic Canada🍁

We’re pleased to share that the Government of Canada, through the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency (ACOA - APECA), provided $50,000 in non-repayable support to the Canadian Institute for Cybersecurity (CIC) at the University of New Brunswick to support the PST Cybersecurity Summit 2026.

Held on August 20 in Fredericton, the Summit brought together leaders and experts from government, industry, academia, and research to exchange ideas and perspectives on some of the most pressing issues shaping our digital future.

This investment helped create a space for conversations around cybersecurity, artificial intelligence, emerging threats, cyber resilience, and digital trust, while strengthening connections across Canada's cybersecurity ecosystem.

Support for initiatives like the PST Cybersecurity Summit helps bring research and industry closer together, create opportunities for collaboration, and strengthen cybersecurity capacity and innovation here in New Brunswick and across Atlantic Canada.

We sincerely thank the Government of Canada and ACOA for their support and for recognizing the importance of continued investment in cybersecurity research, collaboration, and talent.

Learn more: https://bit.ly/4gsLm1N

08/24/2026

📢 We’re Hiring: Administrator & Operations Manager
📍 Fredericton, NB | On‑Campus
🏢 Canadian Institute for Cybersecurity

The Canadian Institute for Cybersecurity is seeking an experienced Administrator & Operations Manager to provide senior‑level administrative and operational leadership in support of cutting‑edge research, training, and innovation.

This is a key leadership role overseeing daily operations, people, partnerships, and communications for a growing institute supporting 90+ personnel and multi‑million‑dollar research initiatives.

🗓 Application deadline: September 2nd, 2026 at 4:00 PM

If you’re a seasoned professional with strong leadership, organizational, and communications expertise, and a passion for supporting research excellence, we’d love to hear from you.

👉 Apply now and help shape the future of cybersecurity at UNB.
https://jobs.careerbeacon.com/details/administrator--operations-manager/2236965?utm_source=University+of+New+Brunswick&utm_medium=widget&utm_campaign=refer&utm_content=2236965&utm_term=jobtitle