topic

AI

Citizen Lab researchers and director Ron Deibert have signed an open letter to the Canadian Minister of AI and Minister of Industry rejecting the “National Sprint” on AI strategy. The letter calls upon the ministers to extend the consultation deadline, rewrite the public survey, and create a more representative AI task force. Signatories of the […]

Citizen Lab senior researcher Alberto Fittarelli speaks with Negar Mortazavi, host of The Iran Podcast, about Israel-linked influence operations pushing for regime change in Iran. Fittarelli explains how an artificial network of users on X amplified calls for unrest, sometimes with the aid of AI-generated images and videos. The perpetrators of the operation were “trying to fake grassroots support […]

November 4, 2025

AI  is becoming a buzzword among Canadian policymakers, but should there be more focus on regulation than innovation? In a new article, Citizen Lab director Ron Deibert speaks with The Financial Post about the risks of AI. Generative AI is transformational technology, but lack of oversight poses ethical risks.  “It’s astonishing how the industry is […]

October 31, 2025

The control and strategic manipulation of information has long played a role in the geopolitical and ideological competition between the Islamic Republic of Iran and its political adversaries, including Israel. Prior Citizen Lab research has uncovered Iranian disinformation efforts, however, in this investigation we focus on the “other side” of the geopolitical competition. We analyzed an influence operation we assess as most likely undertaken by an entity of the Israeli government or a private subcontractor working closely with it.

October 14, 2025