Canada has issued a new travel alert for its citizens planning to visit the United States, saying they should “expect scrutiny” at the US border and that their mobile phones, computers, and other electronic devices could be searched by immigration officers.
The travel alert warns Canadian citizens that US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers don’t need to provide a reason to search someone’s electronic devices and that officers have “significant discretion” in deciding whether a visitor must hand over their passwords to access mobile phones, laptops, and tablets.
The warning comes after several international travelers claimed they were denied entry at the US border and quickly deported after CBP officers found content on their electronic devices that they deemed offensive towards the Trump administration.
Last month, a French scientist who was traveling to the United States to attend a conference claimed he was denied entry after immigration officers searched through the researcher’s mobile phone and found messages between the scientist and his colleagues in which he expressed a personal opinion on the Trump administration’s research policy.
US authorities denied the scientist’s entry to the US on the grounds that he had “hateful and conspiratorial messages” on his personal devices.
The Canadian government is now warning its citizens that refusal to hand over electronic devices or provide the password to unlock these devices could result in CBP seizing the device and then denying entry to the United States.
Canada says it has no power to help citizens who have been denied entry and that they may face being held for a period of time before they are deported.
“Before crossing the border, put your device in airplane mode to ensure remote files don’t get downloaded accidentally,” the recently updated travel alert says.
Passenger demand for flights between Canada and the United States has plummeted by an astonishing 70%+ over the traditionally busy summer months, according to new data published by a leading aviation data science company.
OAG Aviation Worldwide says new travel bookings have “collapsed” as Canadians boycott the United States following President Trump’s inflammatory rhetoric on making Canada the 51st state, alongside an increasingly hostile trade war.
As opposed to “No Scrutiny” at the border prior to 2025, I guess. Maybe Canada should look at themselves on this; they won’t even allow a person with a DUI to enter.
I enjoy fictional stories.
No one really cares if Canadians don’t travel to the USA.
I’m sure the current Liberal government isn’t whipping up fear to help them during an election campaign….