Every year, across Canada, research institutions face security threats that can compromise their research, innovation, collaborations and partnerships, both domestically and internationally. While an open and collaborative research enterprise can lead to groundbreaking and transformative discoveries, it risks knowledge theft, interference or the unwanted transfer of data across borders.
To equip Canadian research institutions and their research teams with the tools and knowledge to secure their research, today, the Government of Canada announced the implementation of new, dedicated research security funding through the Research Support Fund (RSF). To further support institutions, this new funding will be made available through the Incremental Project Grants and extended to institutions that receive $2 million or more in eligible research funding. The funding will be added as a new priority area of the Incremental Project Grants to support institutions in building their capacity to identify, assess and mitigate potential risks associated with research security.
The funding for research security stems from an investment of $125 million over five years, starting in 2022-23, and $25 million on an ongoing basis annually, which was announced as part of the Government of Canada’s Budget 2022. Approximately 50 Canadian institutions that receive $2 million or more in funding, based on the notional grant amounts for the RSF, will receive the additional funding for research security.
Some examples of how institutions may use their research security funds include:
- Hire personnel to coordinate and carry out research security activities across their institution or identify risks and risk mitigation measures across risk areas (physical, cyber, partnerships, intellectual property, people).
- Acquire software and software licenses to conduct open-source due diligence searches.
- Help cover costs for cyber security infrastructure.
More information will be released in the coming weeks on the RSF website.
If you have questions, contact: information@rsf-fsr.gc.ca.