CSE Assesses PRC Likely Uses Machine Learning to Profile Targets Connected to Canadian Democratic Processes

In the Cyber Threats to Canada's Democratic Process: 2025 Update (TDP 2025), published March 2025, the Communications Security Establishment assessed that it is likely that the PRC has both the ability and intent to use machine learning to analyse data to produce detailed intelligence profiles of potential targets connected to democratic processes — including voters, politicians, members of the media, public servants, and activists. CSE noted that data available for such profiling includes shopping habits, health records, and browsing and social media activity obtained through open source acquisition, covert purchase, and theft.

Separately, CSE's National Cyber Threat Assessment 2025–2026 (NCTA), published October 2024, assessed that well-resourced states are very likely leveraging AI tools to help process and analyze large volumes of data they collect, and that foreign intelligence services are very likely using AI-enabled data analytics to find patterns and trends in bulk data, gain insights on individuals, and inform follow-on cyber operations.

The CSIS Public Report 2024, released June 2025, confirmed that PRC cyber threat actors had targeted members of the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China, including multiple Canadian Members of Parliament, in 2021. The NCTA also assessed that PRC cyber threat actors have very likely stolen commercially sensitive data from Canadian firms and institutions.

CSIS issued a security alert in November 2023 warning about a Chinese talent recruitment campaign targeting federal government employees through talent recruitment and technology transfer initiatives, which could result in the misappropriation of government resources and the loss of proprietary and sensitive information.