Watchdog says Canadians right to worry about U.S. border searches of cellphones

Thes e devices contain a lot of sensitive information.We should be very concerned. Privacy commissioner Daniel Therrien

OTTAWA — Canadians should be “very concerned” about their cellphones, computers and other electronic devices being searched by U.S. border agents, the federal privacy czar says.

Privacy commissioner Daniel Therrien told a House of Commons committee Monday that U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers can look at mobile devices and even demand passwords under American law.

Therrien cited statistics indicating U.S. border searches of mobile phones had increased between 2015 and 2016.

“These devices contain a lot of sensitive information,” Therrien said.

“We should be very concerned.”

New Democrat MP Nathan Cullen asked if that means Canadians shouldn’t cross the border with a phone, laptop or tablet unless they have “great comfort” with a U.S. border official inspecting the contents.

“Yes, as a matter of law,” Therrien said, though he acknowledged officers would not have time to inspect everyone’s devices, given the huge numbers of people that cross the border daily.

Therrien agreed with Cullen’s suggestion that nothing in law could prevent U.S. border officials from peeking at a senior Canadian official’s “playbook” on a trade negotiation.

Cullen said one of his constituents was denied entry to the U.S. on healthrelated grounds because information on the person’s phone indicated a prescription for heart medication.

“And I thought, well, this is a strange invasion of one’s privacy.”

Therrien said Canadians should assess the “risk tolerance” they have to their information being examined by U.S. officers.

“My point is, think about what you’re exposing your information to, and limit the amount of information that you bring to the U.S., because it may be required by customs officers.”

Canadian law also allows border officers to inspect cellphones, since they are treated as goods, Therrien told the Commons committee on access to information, privacy and ethics.

But he noted Canada’s border agency has a policy of limiting searches to cases where an officer has grounds to do so — for instance, because a phone might contain information about contraband items.

Therrien said his office had received a “small number of complaints” about Canadian border officers searching cellphones.