Operational Programs

Additional Issues

Environmental Scanning

In an effort to be proactive and pre-emptive in the contemporary threat environment, the Service is studying trends and their potential global and national implications. Resources of the Service’s Requirements, Analysis and Productions Branch are tasked to study open information from various sources for issues of potential interest to the Counter Terrorism, the Counter Intelligence and the Security Screening branches of the Service, as well as to Government clients. Through strategic scanning, the Service seeks to identify emerging issues and conflict which may threaten public safety or national security. Unclassified reports which are produced based on information collected through strategic scanning are published by the Service.

Technological Challenges

Each year brings exponential growth in technological progress. As noted in the section on Information Operations, technological advances represent not only additional programs and tools for use by Government but also greater challenges for law-enforcement and national security agencies. The Service seeks, through sharing with government institutions and allied agencies, and through internal research and development, to keep pace with technological developments. Throughout this report, references to technology and the challenge it represents for the international intelligence community are predominant. It is imperative that the Service continues to expend valuable resources to maintain the technological capability to target threats to national security.

[Operational Programs]