Thank you, Sami.
As my colleague noted, I am the deputy chief of CSE, signals intelligence branch, and I'm also responsible for the foreign cyber-operations aspect of the CSE mandate. My pronouns are she and her.
As mentioned, the severity of cybercrime and cyber-incidents targeting Canadians and Canadian critical infrastructure, both public and private, is growing exponentially. Beyond cybercriminals, however, state and state-sponsored cyber-actors also pose a continuing threat to Canada. Through CSE's foreign intelligence mandate, we continue to provide intelligence on foreign cyber-threats, including the activities and intentions of state and non-state actors, which is used by government clients, including the cyber centre, to defend Canada.
Recognizing the evolving threat landscape, the CSE Act came into force in August 2019, which allowed CSE to expand its tool suite to conduct active and defensive cyber-operations, together referred to as foreign cyber-operations.
Since being granted these new powers, CSE has leveraged its cyber operations capability to hinder the efforts of foreign-based extremists seeking to recruit Canadians, to carry out online campaigns and to disseminate violent extremist content.
We have also used these authorities to disrupt the activities of cybercriminals planning ransomware attacks.
Recognizing the importance of investing in cyber-resilience and bolstering Canada's capability, budget 2022 provided Canada's first stand-alone investment in its cyber-operations capability, earmarking $273.7 million over five years and $96.5 million ongoing annually for CSE to build its foreign cyber-operations capabilities and conduct a specific range of cyber-operations focused on countering cybercriminals and protecting Canadian critical infrastructure from cyber-attacks.
Further to CSE's role of providing assistance, CSE has also used its capabilities to support the Canadian Armed Forces in carrying out its mandate.
Our allies, international partners and adversaries all invest heavily in their capabilities, working to build broad-based cyber operations capacity. It goes without saying that CSE monitors cyberspace closely to ensure a responsive approach in protecting Canada and defending its interests.
As the cyber-threat landscape in Canada continues to evolve, CSE is dedicated to advancing cybersecurity and increasing the confidence of Canadians in the systems they rely on daily.
With that, I thank you for the opportunity to appear before you today, and I look forward to answering any questions you may have.