Computer and Library Learning (Archived)

Websense of San Diego, California released a report earlier this week, noting the increase in cybercriminal activity in Canada. In 2010, Canada was 13^th in ranking for hosting cybercrime. This year to date, Canada is now in 6^th place behind the United States, France, Russia, Germany and China. The United States still hosts the most phishing sites in the world (55-60%) while Canada is second with some 5-10%. The U.K. and Germany each host about 3-5% of global phishing sites. The number of Canadian servers hosting phishing websites increased by 319% over the last year. Phishing websites attempt to trick visitors into divulging personal information, banking details and passwords. The creators of these Canadian phishing websites are not necessarily based in Canada but have started using Canadian IT infrastructure from which to launch their attacks. Recent crackdowns in the United States may have spurred cybercriminals to host their phishing sites elsewhere such as Canada.

Canada scored the second highest ranking for hosting bot networks or botnets (automated hacking and control networks), a 53% increase over 2010. Canada was the only country to show an increase in this category over the past eight months. Phishing and botnets are examples of “malware” or malicious software in which personal finance and identity are at risk. For example, consider the recent hacking of Air Miles and Sony Playstation’s online gaming service. The Government of Canada announced a cyber security strategy in 2010 after other G8 countries began addressing the issue. The strategy explains why cyber security is an issue for individuals and businesses, offers steps that can be taken to improve cyber security, and explains what the Government of Canada is doing to improve cyber security. Canada’s Privacy Commissioner recently called for strengthened laws that would impose fines on organizations that have not taken sufficient action to safeguard personal information from cybercriminals. The Office of the Privacy Commissioner offers access to Privacy Quiz for Businesses and  Securing Personal Information: A Self-Assessment Tool for Organizations on its website.