A software firm located in Centretown has been awarded a multimillion-dollar contract to protect federal government secrets from prying eyes.
Titus, located on Preston Street, was recently awarded the $5.9 million commission. Its job is to work hand in hand with Shared Services Canada to tighten the security of its email system.
Shared Services Canada is a new federal government created to trim the costs of the civil service. It is focusing on closing many government data centres, consolidating over 100 email systems into one and greatly reducing the thousands of government computer networks that currently exist.
For its part, Titus will focus on providing security for the new, streamlined government system. It will attempt to audit the movement of sensitive material. Titus software will flag top-secret material so they cannot be leaked outside of the government system.
The technology will create much-needed accountability, as it will now be plain to discern when a sensitive email was sent, who it was sent by, and where it was sent to.
“No longer can the user say, ‘I didn’t know,’ ” Mitch Robinson, the chief operating officer of Titus, has told local media.
The growing threat of cyber attack and cyber espionage has not gone unnoticed in Ottawa business and entrepreneurial circles. Many believe the cyber realm provides a unique business opportunity that Ottawa needs to capitalize on.
Among these is Tony Bailetti, a professor at the Sprott School of Business at Carleton University and noted technology innovation guru.
“Our goal is for Ottawa to become a global leader in cyber-security,” Bailetti says.
For Bailetti, the threat of hackers has gone far beyond identity theft.
“Cyber attacks come in many different forms,” he says. “Stealing intellectual property, disrupting critical infrastructure, usurping identity, compromising online bank accounts, distributing viruses, and posting confidential information – the list is long.”
To make matters worse, Canada is notably behind on cyber security issues.
“The government’s approach to cyber security can accurately be described as a dog’s breakfast,” says Joe Cummins, the founder and CEO of the Ottawa-based firm Red Tiger Cyber Security Services.
“We have no standard. We have no true or effective overarching strategy to keep the bad guys out,” Cummins says.
“Clearly, there are problems that go along with this – national security problems, banking problems, and so forth.".
But the lack of expertise also provides an opportunity.
“Cyber security is a gold mine. It has nowhere to go but up,” Cummins says. “If you want to start up your own company in Ottawa, cyber IT is without a doubt the first thing to get into. The government will have money for you. The private sector will have money for you. Everyone has money for you.”