CSIS warned MPs, senators that hostile states might listen in on their conversations

Canada's intelligence agency warned MPs and senators ahead of the 2021 election that their public conversations probably would be monitored by foreign states and that threat actors could target their staff, according to recently obtained documents.

"You are of immediate and constant interest to certain hostile state actors," reads a copy of Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) talking points prepared for briefings with elected officials prior to the 2021 election.

While the fact that CSIS briefed some MPs before the election is public knowledge, the briefing document — obtained through an access to information request — sheds light on what was said behind closed doors and raises questions about how effective the briefings were.

"I think you'd have to describe it as a pretty basic overview," said Wesley Wark, a senior fellow with the Centre for International Governance Innovation.

"But essentially, this is a security intelligence agency approaching a group of MPs with a belief — which seems to have been borne out — that members of Parliament, at least at that time, have really very little understanding of foreign interference issues."

The document's release comes as a parliamentary committee probing claims of interference in Canadian elections by Beijing prepares to hear from the people who oversaw the two main parties' campaigns during the 2019 and 2021 elections.

Former Liberal national campaign directors Jeremy Broadhurst and Azam Ishmael will take questions from MPs starting after 11 a.m. ET. They'll be followed by former Conservative national campaign directors Fred DeLorey and Hamish Marshall.

The goal of the briefings, said CSIS, was to alert Parliamentarians to the threat and to "create political resiliency against the People's Republic of China's foreign interference efforts in Canada."

According to the CSIS briefing document, elected officials were warned of the "tradecraft" of certain hostile states. They were warned about "elicitation," for example — that's when a foreign actor provides an individual with limited or false information in the hope that the target will correct them and provide the right answers.

"To protect yourself, be aware of attempts by individuals to elicit information from you and avoid 'oversharing' whenever possible," said the briefing document.

"You should assume public conversations are monitored."

Some state actors are playing the long game and can be "extremely patient in their interference efforts," CSIS warned. The agency said threat actors will use innocuous social gatherings and shared interests to build relationships with politicians in order to exert leverage down the road.

"To protect yourself, be aware and keep track of strange social interactions, frequent requests to meet privately, and out-of-place introductions or engagements. Be aware of efforts targeting your staff, and also note odd attempts seeking employment with your office," said the briefing document.

Even an MP's calendar could be a target, CSIS warned.