ARTICLE ARCHIVE

16-Oct | Written by Jean Loup P. G. Le Roux
El Salvador’s digital revolution offers a preview of what technology-driven economies might look like in the future. From the adoption of Bitcoin to the establishment of Bitcoin City and the rollout of a national digital identity system, the country is attempting to redefine what it means to be a modern, connected economy.

19-May | Written by Edward Pereira
For years we have been told that there is a severe shortage of workers with cybersecurity skills and experience, both in Canada and internationally. Most studies have described a crisis in terms of hundreds of thousands, even millions of job vacancies, depending on the scope of the study.

14-February | Written by Jean Loup P. G. Le Roux
A few weeks ago, the whole world reeled on the news that Twitch had been hacked. Millions of people instantly flocked to haveibeenpwned.com to see if their emails had been compromised and quickly changed their passwords.

22-Oct | Written by Luigi Tiano.

2021 will be a year to remember for many reasons. Unprecedented technological innovations have resulted in a rapid digitalization of our everyday lives. As a result, the amount of data being captured and handled related to individuals has grown at exponential rates.

5-Jul | Written by Marcia Mills.

Government customers have very unique data and information protection requirements – influenced not only by law, but also by obligations to protect information as a matter of public safety and national security. Concurrently, governments are also under obligations to disclose government information under access to information/freedom of information laws. This article explains the critical and often non-negotiable requirements and constraints that apply to any supplier who provides information to or receives information from their government customer.

17-May | Written by Vanessa Henri , Marek Nitoslawski and Eliane Ellbogen.

The authors will delve into the issue of protecting trade secrets, which is more topical than ever with the current prevalence of the “work-from-home” model. Specifically, the authors look at how the legal framework and considerations tied to the protection of trade secrets differ from those of personal information, but also, how in certain contexts, these two types of informational assets can overlap. For example, when personal information is used to fuel predictive algorithms, it may also be protectable as a trade secret. The governance and protection of all valuable information assets including, especially now, trade secrets, should be at the forefront of today’s business concerns.

5-March | Written by Jean Loup P. G. Le Roux
The many security problems linked to the Internet of Things (IoT) is not a new subject - cybersecurity experts have been warning everyone about these vulnerabilities for a long time now. While manufacturers have refused to heed these warnings (for the most part), legislation is now finally catching up.

11 - January | Written by Eric Gold
There are serious consequences for both organizations and their stakeholders when software providers make misleading or confusing security claims. The livelihoods of businesses and individuals rest on such claims.

23-November | Written by Jean Loup P. G. Le Roux
As we wrap up 2020, it's time to reflect back on this pivotal year that was from a cybersecurity perspective. Jean Loup P.G. LeRoux, CEO of I&I Strategy, shares his insights on cyber-related highlights and lowlights. He also offers some personal suggestions on how companies can ramp up their cyber posture as we head into 2021. – Steve Tso

2-November | Written by Luigi Bruno
Quantum computing brings next-level of computing power to cybersecurity to both the hacker and the defender. What exactly is quantum computing as it pertains to cyber? How does it change the game? What's its future? Luigi Bruno (Doctoral Candidate – McGill University, Faculty of Law) breaks it down in this CBR article. – Steve Tso

1-October | Written by Jean Loup P. G. Le Roux
Back in July 2020, Twitter announced that 130 accounts had been hacked. The hackers tweeted from 45 of them from, 36 had their direct messages accessed, and 7 accounts had their data downloaded. How does a company as large and as sophisticated as Twitter get hacked? Jean Loup Le Roux takes a deep dive into what happened, and discusses ways for future prevention. – Steve Tso

25-August | Written by Matthew MacNeil
Standards are industry guardrails. Their purpose is to protect stakeholders. Ever wonder how standards are established in the technology space and how they affect our digital economy? This article by Matthew MacNeil (Director, Standards and Technology, CIO Strategy Council) explains the internal processes involved in creating the National Standards of Canada, and how they shape our day to day. – Steve Tso

18-August | Written by Matthew MacNeil
Hackers don’t care if you’re a Fortune 500 company or if you’re a mom and pop retail business. The notion of “we’re too small to get hit” is naive and dangerous in today’s age of automated cyber attacks. The CIO Strategy Council is working with the Canadian Federal Government to put forth a set of standards specifically catered for small and medium sized businesses. In this article, Matt MacNeil (Director, Standards and Technology, CIO Strategy Council) shares background on this relationship and provides a preview of what the standards may look like. – Steve Tso

22-July | Written by Vanessa Henri & Linda Agaby
AI is a double-edged sword. In the hands of cyber criminals, it can enable automated attacks with ever-increasing sophistication. In the hands of cyber defenders, it can help scale up defense against such attacks. Either way, AI is here to stay, and along with it comes pros, cons and changing legislations. Emerging Technology Lawyers Vanessa Henri and Linda Agaby from Fasken provide a strategic overview of AI from a cybersecurity angle, highlighting groundwork already laid by policy makers, and offering a glimpse to what’s on the horizon. – Steve Tso

8-July | Written by Alexander Rau
If you have a social media account, someone already has a digital file of your face on their database. This is a privacy concern. Unfortunately for most users, the extent of this concern remains unknown, largely due to lengthy fine prints or tedious communication processes. This article by Alexander Rau journals his personal experience of approaching one facial recognition software company to find out exactly what biometric information they owned on him. It includes the necessary links in case you’re interested to run the same experiment. – Steve Tso

2-July | Written by Jean Loup P. G. Le Roux
Whenever the topic of unauthorized cloud data access surfaces, most point to cyberattacks as the expected culprit. Yet, there are LEGAL avenues for organizations to access your cloud data. Jean Loup P. G. Le Roux takes a look at two possible ways this can be done- through “jurisdiction” and “regulatory” systems and outlines what you can do to protect yourself against this. - Steve Tso

29-May | Written by Steve Tso
Phishing is a form of deception, and deceptions are comprised of two components: a distraction, and a decoy. The greater the distraction, the more effective the decoy. Both work together to entice its victims to commit. CV-19 represents an impactful distraction that’s prolonged. And hackers are taking advantage by pairing CV-19 with a myriad of relatable decoys. This article discusses the ramification of this through the lens of a typical Canadian family.

12-May | Written by Vanessa Henri & Oleg Stratiev
COVID-19 has forced businesses to migrate online at an unprecedented pace. While this may preserve business continuity, the yet unknown costs associated with cybersecurity may be lurking. When they rear their unpleasant heads, who is liable? Vanessa Henri and Oleg Stratiev are both lawyers at Fasken, and they share their thoughts on this sensitive topic from a legal perspective in this CBR Featured Post. – Steve Tso

11-May | Written by Steve Tso
Similar to not wearing a seat belt, not taking cybersecurity preventative measures is irresponsible. In this article, I draw a comparison between the two and explain how getting to the point of being numb with something that’s clearly in the wrong doesn’t make it right. I then discuss the origins of Cyber Business Review, how it works, and how you can get involved.