PRC Identified as Dominant Threat to Canada's Democracy, as Vigneault Warns of "Terrifying" Chinese Cognitive Warfare

CSIS officials revealed increasingly sophisticated tactics used by Beijing to influence Canadian elections and public opinion, highlighting a chilling new concept introduced by former CSIS Director David Vigneault: cognitive warfare. This advanced form of psychological manipulation, Vigneault warned, is aimed at altering how entire populations think about critical geopolitical issues.

“Cognitive warfare is designed to change how an entire population will be reflecting and thinking,” Vigneault testified before the Hogue Commission.

“One of the most concrete examples of this has been the PRC targeting the population of Taiwan,” Vigneault explained. Using technology, psychology, and social media manipulation, the PRC has bombarded Taiwanese citizens with disinformation, gradually eroding resistance to the idea that Taiwan’s annexation by China is inevitable.

But Taiwan is only one of many targets.

CSIS officials, including Vanessa Lloyd, emphasized that Canada is also a key focus of the PRC’s foreign interference efforts. Lloyd testified that CSIS has been investigating foreign interference for over 40 years, with China’s tactics evolving from basic influence campaigns into complex operations that manipulate elections, control public discourse, and deepen divisions within diaspora communities.

“China directs its foreign interference activities in a very party-agnostic way to individuals it views as most friendly or willing to advance China’s interests,” Lloyd said. The Chinese party-state’s long-term goal, the Commission heard, is to bolster its own security by influencing Canadian policies and weakening democratic institutions.

These operations are not limited to elections. The PRC has built a network of political actors across Canada, often using community and cultural organizations to disseminate pro-China narratives. These networks, Lloyd explained, amplify Chinese policy positions and spread disinformation, subtly undermining Canadian policies that conflict with Beijing’s objectives.

However, the most alarming development, according to Vigneault, is the use of cognitive warfare.

“Cognitive warfare now uses new approaches in psychology, new understanding about brain functions, and technology like social media to penetrate into people’s homes—and through their devices, through their brains,” Vigneault said.