The role of Canada’s intelligence and national security community in dealing with the COVID-19 has been widely debated since the onset of the pandemic. Some describe its emergence as an intelligence failure or a failure of early warning. Others, however, note that the role of intelligence and national security in health matters is and should remain limited. It is also clear that traditional national security threats are evolving rapidly during the pandemic. There are concerns, in particular, about the rise of extremist violence as well as cyber-attacks and disinformation. This raises urgent questions: should Canadian intelligence agencies engage in “health intelligence”? Do they have the tools and mandates to do so, without compromising the law and the privacy of Canadians? How are threats evolving, and what are the challenges in countering them in a pandemic?

In this workshop, NPSIA faculty and students, each taking a different approach to examining the role of the Canada’s national security and intelligence community in anticipating, responding to, and managing global public welfare emergencies like the COVID-19 pandemic, and set out lessons learned for the future. The floor will then be open to questions, amongst panelists and the audience to challenge and test those ideas and findings.

Presenters:

Alex Wilner & Casey Babb– Exploiting Chaos: How Malicious Non-State Actors Leverage COVID-19 to their Advantage in Cyberspace

Leah West– Privacy vs Health: Surveillance to stop the spread

Jessica Davis & Alexander Corbeil -Ethics, intelligence, and priorities in a global pandemic

Stephen M. Saideman and Graeme Hopkins- Corona as a Constraint on the CAF?  As Always, The Mission Matters

IPIS Students (supervised by Stephanie Carvin)-  Supply Chains During the COVID-19 Pandemic