Good morning, and thank you very much.

Thank you for this opportunity to speak about Natural Resources Canada's use of technological tools to safeguard our technological and data assets and ensure the consistent evolution and growth of our scientific endeavours.

I would like to recognize that I am speaking to you from the traditional unceded territory of the Algonquin Anishinaabe people. We recognize Indigenous peoples as the customary keepers and defenders of the Ottawa River watershed and its tributaries. We honour their long history of welcoming many nations to this beautiful territory and uphold and uplift the voice and values of our host nations.

As noted, I am Francis Brisson, the chief financial officer and assistant deputy minister responsible for corporate management services at Natural Resources Canada. My primary responsibilities include corporate services, human resources, information technology and security. Our department's chief information officer and CIO, Pierre Pelletier, who is here with me today, is responsible for the management, implementation and usability of information and computer technology at NRCan.

NRCan is both a science-based and a policy and economic organization. It is critical for NRCan to ensure its core functions remain resilient and responsive to internal and external threats. Threats affect not only our digital data but also our physical systems and devices. As the complexity of our digital environment grows, so does the risk of compromising our systems and assets. These risks include data breaches, intellectual property theft, service disruptions, financial setbacks and security threats.

Protecting against and responding to risks requires regular and sustained effort. Our department, like others, has many different systems, policies and tools to manage and respond to risks. Addressing and responding to threats can require forensic software tools. NRCan purchased a licence for magnetic forensics to have this tool in our tool kit, but we have never used it.

I would also underline that should the department have business requirements to use this software or similar software, NRCan will follow protocols and requirements for appropriate use and privacy impact assessments.

Thank you for your attention. Pierre Pelletier and I are pleased to answer your questions about our work.