CSE is the national signals intelligence agency for foreign intelligence and the technical authority for cyber security and information assurance.
The Communications Security Establishment Act (the CSE Act) sets out the five aspects of our mandate:
- cyber security and information assurance: CSE acquires, uses, and analyzes information from the global information infrastructure, or from other sources, to provide advice, guidance and services to help protect electronic information and information infrastructures.
- foreign intelligence: CSE acquires, covertly or otherwise, information from or through the global information infrastructure, to provide foreign intelligence, in accordance with the Government of Canada’s intelligence priorities.
- defensive cyber operations: CSE carries out activities on or through the global information infrastructure to help protect electronic information and information infrastructures that are of importance to the Government of Canada.
- active cyber operations: CSE carries out activities on or through the global information infrastructure to degrade, disrupt, influence, respond to or interfere with the capabilities, intentions or activities of a foreign individual, state, organization or terrorist group as they relate to international affairs, defence or security.
- technical and operational assistance: CSE provides technical and operational assistance to federal law enforcement and security agencies, the Canadian Forces, and the Department of National Defence.
We use our technical expertise in all five aspects of our mandate. We do so to keep Canadians safe and secure.
