Advertisement

More info needed how CBSA assesses incoming air passengers: spy watchdog

Click to play video: 'Trudeau grilled on airport delays as COVID-19 rules remain'
Trudeau grilled on airport delays as COVID-19 rules remain
RELATED: Trudeau grilled on airport delays as COVID-19 rules remain – May 18, 2022

The national spy watchdog says Canada’s border agency needs to do a better job of documenting how and why it singles out certain air passengers for possible additional scrutiny.

The Canada Border Services Agency’s targeting program uses pre-arrival risk assessments to identify inbound air travellers more likely to be ineligible to enter Canada.

As a first step, the border agency looks at information about passengers routinely provided by commercial air carriers, including age, sex and national or ethnic origin.

Click to play video: 'CBSA reminding travelers to use mandatory ArriveCAN app to enter Canada'
CBSA reminding travelers to use mandatory ArriveCAN app to enter Canada

The National Security and Intelligence Review Agency found the border agency relies on information and intelligence from a variety of sources to determine which data elements to treat as indicators of risk.

Story continues below advertisement

In a report released late today, the intelligence watchdog says the border agency has the legal authority to conduct such air passenger targeting.

However, it found shortcomings in the border agency’s documentation of its program activities that made it difficult to ensure all decisions complied with legal and regulatory restrictions.

Sponsored content

AdChoices