A civil liberties group has published a new guide for people concerned about Canadian border agents searching their electronic devices like smartphones, laptops and tablets. Although there are unsettled legal questions about how these searches should work, the B.C. Civil Liberties Association says “the bottom line is that the CBSA can and does search electronic devices at the border” without a warrant and sometimes randomly. That means border agents could end up seeing private emails and text messages, photos, web browser histories and sensitive documents, even if you’ve done nothing…
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‘I Was Truly Shocked’: Canadian Banned From U.S. Over Pot Investment | CTV News
With the impending legalization of recreational marijuana this fall, Canadians with investments in American pot companies will have to be careful crossing the U.S. border following the news that one prominent businessman was banned for life. Sam Znaimer is a prominent venture capitalist in Vancouver who started investing in budding U.S. cannabis startup companies a few years ago. In May, Znaimer was trying to travel to the States when he was stopped by border officials. During the questioning, he said he was never asked about his personal consumption of the…
Read MoreLegal Recreational Marijuana: What You Need To Know | CBC News
The legislative battle over marijuana may be over, but as Canadians look ahead to Oct. 17 — the date legalization takes effect — there are some practical considerations that should be top of mind for those keen to light up legally. First of all — and this is typical of Canada’s federal system — not all provinces and territories are following the same path to legalization. Some are imposing different regulations on the drug within their jurisdictions. Two provinces, Quebec and Manitoba, are banning home cultivation altogether. Canadians who cross the border…
Read MoreYour Legal Pot Buying Data Could Get You Banned From The U.S., Lawyers Warn – National | Globalnews.ca
As laws on marijuana relax on both sides of the U.S.-Canadian border, attitudes have hardened at the border itself. When Canadians are able to buy legal recreational marijuana sometime this year, we are going to start generating a lot of consumer data. Some of it will be clearly linked to individuals: credit card purchases at physical stores and online ordering to home addresses, for example. And that could have lasting consequences. Canadians can be barred for life from the United States — even after legalization here — if a border…
Read MoreCanadian Customs Facilities In The U.S.? Americans Say It Could Happen Soon – Politics – CBC News
Canada could soon have its first customs facilities inside the United States, says an American official who cites Florida and Arizona as potential sites for pilot projects in ongoing experiments to modernize the border. This would come decades after American preclearance facilities were first placed at major Canadian airports, where travellers have long cleared customs before flying to the U.S., with the goal of reducing wait times at the back end. Newer innovations involve train travel, with pilot projects to have rail passengers clear U.S. customs in Montreal and B.C.,…
Read MoreCLOUD Act Becomes Law, Increases Government Access To Online Info – c|net
The federal spending bill includes provisions that lower barriers to law enforcement requests for your emails, documents and other internet communications. The CLOUD Act makes it easier for law enforcement to access data stored on servers overseas. Pictured is a server rack in Hong Kong. The federal spending bill signed by US President Donald Trump on Friday does more than fund the budget. It also makes it easier for law enforcement agencies to demand access to online information no matter what country the data is stored in. Lawmakers added the…
Read MoreUpdating ‘Briefcase Law’: Defence Lawyers Try To End Warrantless Smartphone Searches At Border – Technology & Science – CBC News
Imagine losing your smartphone or leaving your laptop behind on a train or bus. How much could someone learn about you — your interests, your lifestyle, your habits — based on what they could access on the device? What conclusions could someone make when the photos you’ve taken, the apps you’ve installed and the websites you’ve visited are laid bare? According to the Supreme Court of Canada: quite a few. Unlike a briefcase or a filing cabinet, judges have found, a smartphone can contain “immense amounts of information” that touch a person’s “biographical core.” Read…
Read MoreBorder the big issue as a Trump official finally set to visit Ottawa: Chris Hall – Politics – CBC News
U.S. Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly is coming to Ottawa on Friday, the first member of President Donald Trump’s inner circle to accept an invitation to head north for meetings with his Canadian counterparts. That might not sound like a big deal, but it is. For weeks now, Canadian politicians have trekked south to meet members of the U.S. cabinet and Congress, each visit built around the singular purpose of reminding, convincing and cajoling the Americans into understanding that the economic relationship between the two countries supports jobs and investment…
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