Info-Secte / Info-Cult

What Info-Secte / Info-Cult does

Info-Secte (also known as Info-Cult, and operating under the complementary name Centre d'étude des phénomènes sectaires et services d'aide) is a non-profit charitable organization founded in 1980 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It is the only organization of its kind in Canada, providing front-line community intervention to individuals, families, and former members affected by cultic phenomena, along with expert consultation to mental health professionals, government agencies, legal professionals, educators, and researchers. Its core services comprise help and information (one-on-one assistance, advice, referrals), support groups (in French and English, for former members and families), a specialized research and documentation center (over 3,500 books, 1,500+ hours of audio/video archives, and thousands of articles and reports), customized training programs, bilingual email newsletters, and an annual international conference co-organized with the International Cultic Studies Association (ICSA).

The organization's underlying technology is principally informational rather than algorithmic: a bilingual website (infosecte.org), subscription-based email lists distributed via Mailchimp, a curated FAQ, an extensive physical and digital library, and a presence across eight social media platforms. The organization has no mobile application, no public API, and no proprietary software platform; its competitive assets are accumulated human expertise and a 45-year archive of curated content on cultic phenomena, new religious movements, and group dynamics.

Info-Secte's business model is that of a registered Canadian charity (CRA registration 125754242 RR 0001, since January 1, 1980) financed primarily by the Ministère de la Santé et des Services sociaux du Québec and supplemented by private donations, bequests, and volunteer contributions. Services are provided free of charge to the public, with no commercial pricing model. The organization operates from a single Montreal office (5655 Avenue du Parc, Suite 208) with a small team (1-10 employees, four staff identified) and is governed by a board of directors drawn from law, mental health, criminology, philosophy, and academia.

Name

Info-Secte / Info-Cult

Legal name

Info-Secte

Website

https://infosecte.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1980

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Info-Secte (Info-Cult) is a Montreal-based Canadian non-profit, founded in 1980, that provides free help, information, and support to individuals and families affected by cultic phenomena, serving the public, professionals, and government agencies as the only organization of its kind in Canada.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Cult and New Religious Movement Support Services

NAICS

Religious, Grantmaking, Civic, Professional, and Similar Organizations (813), Civic and Social Organizations (8134)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300), Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYBPAGAJAG

Faith-Based Social Services & Community Outreach (Food Pantries, Shelters, Counseling)

Business & Public Services/Nonprofit, NGO & Social Services/Religious & Faith-Based Organizations

Keywords

• Cult support services
• Cultic phenomena information
• Specialized documentation library
• Support groups for families
• Professional training programs

Headquarters

HQ city

Montréal, Québec

HQ country

Canada

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Government Grants: Financed by the Ministère de la Santé et des Services sociaux du Québec (Ministry of Health and Social Services of Quebec) as a registered charity.
2. Private Donations: Charitable organization recognized by the Canada Revenue Agency since January 1, 1980 (registration number 125754242 RR 0001). Accepts monetary donations, bequests, securities, mutual funds, material donations, and volunteer contributions.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Info-Secte is a non-profit charitable organization that delivers front-line help, information, referrals, and support to individuals and families affected by cultic phenomena. It operates a specialized research and documentation center on cultic groups, runs bilingual support groups for former members and families, and provides educational programs and training for professionals in health, social services, education, and legal sectors.

Product overview

Info-Secte / Info-Cult is a non-profit charitable organization founded in 1980 in Montreal, Quebec, offering help and information about cultic groups, their ideologies, and how they operate. The organization provides a portfolio of interconnected services: help and information (front-line intervention), support groups (for former members and families), a specialized research and documentation center (one of Canada's largest on cultic phenomena), educational programs and training, mailing lists (newsletter and news updates), annual conferences (ICSA collaboration), the Dianne Casoni Award (international literary prize), FAQ resources, and public archives. It is funded by the Quebec Ministry of Health and Social Services and private donations, with charitable registration in Canada.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Dianne Casoni International Award: Literary award established in 2020 to stimulate and reward writing work addressing cultic phenomena. Offered in two categories: Scientific and Outreach/Vulgarization, with a $500 CAD bursary for each winner.

Products and services

• Help and Information Services Front-line community intervention providing free assistance, advice, referrals, and information to individuals and families about cultic groups, their ideologies, and how they operate.
• Support Groups Bilingual support groups in French and English for former members of high-demand/high-control groups and for families and loved ones, co-facilitated by professionals and addressing recovery and reconnection.
• Research and Documentation Center Specialized library unique in Canada that supports research on cultic phenomena and groups, providing access to books, audio/video archives, articles, periodicals, research reports, theses, government publications, and primary/secondary source documents.
• Educational Programs and Training Customized training programs and educational presentations for professionals in health, social services, and education sectors covering cultic phenomena awareness, intervention skills, and evaluation of groups.
• ICSA Annual Conference Annual international conference organized in collaboration with the International Cultic Studies Association (ICSA), gathering researchers, professionals, and former members on cultic phenomena, with the 2025 edition hosted in Montreal.
• Dianne Casoni International Award International literary prize awarding writing on cultic phenomena in two categories (Scientific and Outreach/Popularization), each carrying a $500 CAD bursary, with the ceremony held during the annual ICSA conference.

Quantifiable outcome

• 815 requests handled in 2024-2025

Named customers6 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Nine partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• International Cultic Studies Association (ICSA)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2001Since 2001, Info-Secte has collaborated with ICSA to organize annual international conferences. Info-Secte hosted the 2025 ICSA Annual Conference in Montreal (July 2-5, 2025) for its 45th anniversary. ICSA's annual conference abstracts have been published, and the award ceremony for the Dianne Casoni Award takes place during ICSA conferences.
• Université du Québec à Montréal (UQAM)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerHost venue for the 2025 ICSA Annual Conference at the SH pavilion (Cœur des sciences), 200 Rue Sherbrooke O, Montreal. The event is not organized or sponsored by UQAM.
• Office des congrès et du tourisme du grand MontréalminorGTM or Marketing PartnerCongress and tourism bureau serving as a sponsor for the 2025 ICSA Annual Conference in Montreal.
• Université de MonctonminorGTM or Marketing PartnerSponsor of the 2025 ICSA Annual Conference through its Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences.
• Université de Montréal - CIRRES and Chaire en gestion de la diversité culturelle et religieuseminorGTM or Marketing PartnerInterdisciplinary research center on religions and spiritualities and research chair serving as a sponsor for the 2025 ICSA Annual Conference.
• Association québécoise Plaidoyer-VictimesminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborated with Info-Secte in organizing a two-day conference at Université de Montréal in 2009 titled 'Du croire à l'extrême et des pratiques sectaires: prendre en compte et intervenir' and serves as sponsor for the 2025 ICSA conference.
• Centre d'écoute et d'interprétation des nouvelles recherches du croire (CEINR)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborated with Info-Secte and Plaidoyer-Victimes in organizing the 2009 conference on cultic practices and serves as sponsor for the 2025 ICSA conference.
• CROIR (Centre de ressources et d'observation de l'innovation religieuse - Université Laval)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerParticipating organization in the 45th anniversary public panel on July 3, 2025.
• CPRMV (Centre de prévention de la radicalisation menant à la violence)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerParticipating organization in the 45th anniversary public panel on July 3, 2025.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• International Cultic Studies Association (ICSA): International nonprofit studying cultic phenomena and providing education, research, and support to families, ex-members, and professionals; a 24-year collaborator of Info-Secte and the most directly comparable organization by mission, audience, and service mix (research, conferences, family/ex-member support).
• INFORM (Information Network Focus on Religious Movements): UK-based charity with an essentially identical mission: providing reliable information, support, and advice about new religious movements and cults to families, professionals, and policymakers; the closest international functional analog in terms of services, not-for-profit model, and target stakeholders.
• Cult Information and Family Support (CIFS): UK charity offering information, family support, and counseling relating to cults and high-control groups; directly comparable at the service-delivery level (counseling, family support, referrals) and operating at a comparable scale to Info-Secte.

Broad incumbents

• CESNUR (Center for Studies on New Religions): Italy-based academic research and information center on new religious movements and spiritual groups; broader research orientation and international coverage, but engaged in similar documentation, publication, and advisory work as Info-Secte.
• Religious Freedom Institute: US-based nonprofit promoting religious freedom and protecting individuals from religious persecution and coercion — thematically related to Info-Secte's emphasis on individual rights and freedom of thought, though operating with a broader, less cult-specific mandate.

Emerging players

• Open Minds Foundation: Smaller nonprofit focused on exit support, harm reduction, and educational resources for those leaving high-control groups; comparable on counseling/exit-services but operates at a smaller, primarily online scale relative to Info-Secte's institutional footprint.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/info_secte
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCatiJsg74rYkEmzc03lWmvg/featured
• Facebookfacebook.com/InfoCult.InfoSecte
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/info-secte-info-cult
• Instagraminstagram.com/info_secte
• TikToktiktok.com/@infosecte

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles12 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Info-Secte / Info-Cult