Dysfunction Hinders US Border Protection

The headline to this article reads:

Congressional report cites fresh concerns about security of Canada-U.S. border

A new US government report has been released on the US/Canada border situation. Oh boy, here we go again; another rant about the unsecure northern border and Canada’s loose immigration laws. At least, that’s what I thought when I started reading it. There is, to be sure, comments like this one from Joe Lieberman:

"Canadians do have more lenient asylum and immigration laws than we do here and that potentially has an effect on us because of our border,"

The vast size of the northern border was brought up as well, with only approximately 50 kms of the 6400 km border being controlled by US border patrols.

But what was really interesting was what the report the article is talking about says about DHS internally, and how dysfunction between internal factions is hindering border security. From the article:

Among other findings, the GAO report said petty rivalries between myriad federal and state agencies patrolling the border are undermining efforts to crack down not just on drug smugglers, but illegal immigrants and potential terrorists.

…some units within Homeland Security clash over who conducts border surveillance, who interviews detained immigrants and who gets credit for apprehensions, seizures and prosecutions.

Efforts, in fact, to police the border have been tainted by rivalries that "may result in inefficiencies and a breakdown of co-ordination, ultimately leading to the risk of a border that is less secure.''

Various U.S. agencies also fail to share information with one another due to mutual distrust, the report found.

Interestingly, the bright spot in regards to cooperation and sharing of information came between Canada and US departments.

So what does all this mean? Maybe the northern border is a concern. Maybe the US should step up their presence there. The article mentions that Joe Lieberman is calling for more funding and tougher security measures…maybe they need that.

Or maybe they should figure out why there’s so much distrust, inefficiencies, and rivalries within DHS. It makes one wonder how effective border security would be if everyone was reminded they’re working for the same team.

Update – I came across an article from The Vancouver Sun that also talked about the report and Joe Lieberman’s comments. What wasn’t mentioned in the Winnipeg Free Press article was this little gem:

Senator Joe Lieberman, chairman of the Senate Homeland Security committee, said the findings confirm that security efforts are "unacceptably ineffective." He said the report has raised enough concerns that he feels it is time for the U.S. and Canada to discuss whether it makes sense to require Canadians to have visas in order to enter the United States.

"I think it is something that we should be talking about with our Canadian neighbours," Lieberman told reporters.

Now, this is *just* Joe Lieberman making these comments, not Obama or the entire GOP conglomerate. Still, they need to refocus on the real issues: the dysfunction within DHS that is preventing real security from being implemented in the first place.

National Opt Out Day November 24th

The US recently released new regulations for air travel security that has many people angry and upset. You’ve probably heard about the full body scanners that have been installed in airports around North America (I say North America because they exist in Canadian airports for US bound flights). The general idea: they take an x-ray-like picture of you which is reviewed by a central command center offsite to determine if you’re trying to smuggle anything onto the plane.

The images are only clothes deep though, meaning what is seen is a naked image of you…all sides, all appendages, including breasts and genitals.

You don’t have to go through the scanner though. Instead, you can opt for a pat down. So given a choice between being subjected to some level of radiation and someone seeing you naked, some people would rather go for the regular old patdown.

Except its not the regular old pat down anymore. For a real-life account of what the new pat downs involve, check out Jeffrey Goldberg’s article in The Atlantic. Here’s a short outtake though:

At BWI, I told the officer who directed me to the back-scatter that I preferred a pat-down. I did this in order to see how effective the manual search would be. When I made this request, a number of TSA officers, to my surprise, began laughing. I asked why. One of them -- the one who would eventually conduct my pat-down -- said that the rules were changing shortly, and that I would soon understand why the back-scatter was preferable to the manual search. I asked him if the new guidelines included a cavity search.

"No way. You think Congress would allow that?"

I answered, "If you're a terrorist, you're going to hide your weapons in your anus or your vagina." He blushed when I said "vagina."

"Yes, but starting tomorrow, we're going to start searching your crotchal area" -- this is the word he used, "crotchal" -- and you're not going to like it."

"What am I not going to like?" I asked.

"We have to search up your thighs and between your legs until we meet resistance," he explained.

The article goes on to suggest that TSA is making the pat downs so much more uncomfortable than the full body scanners that people will opt for the lesser of the two embarrassments (here’s a link to a follow up article Jeffrey wrote about another experience).

So of course there’s a number of people in the US that are pissed at all of this “security theatre”, to the point that they’ve organized the National Opt Out Day. The goal, from their website, is…

…to send a message to our lawmakers that we demand change.  No naked body scanners, no government-approved groping.  We have a right to privacy and buying a plane ticket should not mean that we're guilty until proven innocent.  This day is needed because many people do not understand what they consent to when choosing to fly.

How do you achieve this goal? By encouraging EVERYONE flying on November 24th (apparently one of the busiest travel days in the US) to opt for the pat down.

Wait…say what?! OPT for the pat down?! Yes…because, the logic goes, the pat down takes way longer to perform than simply stepping into the scanner. The lines would backlog and cause huge delays, making people upset and TSA staff frustrated, and negate the benefits of those scanners.

It’s an interesting tactic and we’ll see how much of an effect this will have on air travel that day, but I suspect that the majority of travellers are focussed on getting to their destination and unfortunately that means that they’ll do whatever is the fastest method of getting through security.

More and more, the train is looking to be a better travel option.

DHS Being Sued Over Electronic Equipment Searches

Earlier this month the Montreal Gazette wrote about Pascal Abidor, a man with France and US citizenship who was the subject of secondary-inspection by US border agents which resulted in:

- Losing his laptop for 11 days
- Being frisked, handcuffed, and placed in a cell
- Fingerprinted and photographed
- Released…3 hours later

Getting the ACLU involved seemed to be what helped get his laptop back sooner than later, and (from the article)…

He is now one of the plaintiffs, along with the National Association of Defence Lawyers and the National Press Photographers Association, suing the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to have policies regarding electronic equipment changed.

Unfortunately for Pascal, he was the perfect storm for determining who should be flagged for secondary inspection:

- Muslim
- Doing his Ph D in modern Shiite history
- Pictures of Hamas and Hezbollah on his laptop
- Foreign citizenship and studying in a different country, but travelling to NY to visit family

Now he’s in the system, as he realized when he flew from London to New Jersey a few months later and was detained again. I love the comment in the article:

…agents seemed to have inside information about Abidor, asking about the last time he was stopped, how he pays for travels, his girlfriend and Ph.D. and whether he was Muslim.

This shouldn’t be a surprise, as we all know that when you get sent to secondary inspection you’re flagged in the system, especially after fingerprints and other information is gathered.

Unfortunately I don’t know how successful the lawsuit is going to be. It’ll come down to the rule of law against the fear of terrorism, and unfortunately its much easier to succumb to fear. Still, for foreigners this is another example of why crossing into the US can be dangerous. If this is how they treat their own, how do you think they’ll treat those from other countries?

The Liar, the Car, and the Cell Phone – CBSA and Your Privacy

Oh poor Derrick Anderson. He went to the Minneapolis area to buy a cheap car, came back to the Canadian border and lied about how much he actually paid for it to avoid paying extra money in duty and taxes (y’know, THE LAW). (Click here to read the Winnipeg Sun article)

A CBSA officer then went into his new car, found his cell phone, and proceeded to read his text messages; one of which showed the actual price he paid. With this new info, the poor lad had to come up with $5100 on the spot to cover the tax and other fees…a call to Daddy helped out.

Now he and his father are making an issue out of this in the local media, admitting that Derrick lied but focussing on the “invasion of privacy” from the border guard rifling through his text messages.

I’m not really going to comment on the fact that this guy is a loser for trying to mask his attempt at fraud by saying it was an “error in judgement”. You want to go to the US and get cheaper products, fine. But don’t try to screw over the Canadian economy that so richly provides you with, among other things, free health care by not paying your fair share of taxes at the border. Even with the $5100 tax tag applied, I’m sure the car was still cheaper than purchasing it up here.

Instead, let’s focus on the privacy concern. Did the CBSA officer have the authority to search the cell phone? According to the CBSA spokesperson, yes:

CBSA regional spokeswoman Lisa White said the federal Customs Act’s Section 99 allows border personnel to look closely at a wide range of possessions in vehicles.

“And that also includes examination of electronic devices such as laptops, cellphones and iPods,” she said. “These searches are authorized by law.”

That’s right folks, the Canadian Border Services Agency has full authority to examine what’s on your laptop, cell phone, external hard drive, etc. How do you think they catch those guys with child porn?

Not sure why this should be a surprise since the US instituted a similar directive last year. Still, a refresher might be in order.

If you leave Canada and try to return, realize that any aspect of your trip and/or possessions can be scrutinized by our own border guards. Just because you’re Canadian doesn’t mean you just get a free pass back into the country. I gave some travel tips in the link I just posted above, but let me add a few others.

Password Protect Your Data
Set your cell phone to require a password, same with your laptop and anything else. Now, this won’t prevent a search, but at least you’ll be aware of any searches that could occur.

Don’t Communicate What You Don’t Want Seen
Anything that could be searched, like text messages, email history on your laptop or files, etc. are all searchable by border guards on both sides of the US/Canada border. You don’t want it searched, don’t bring them or delete them from your device before you hit the border.

Our personal privacy does not extend to re-entry into the country, right or wrong. It’s the game that we’re forced to play, so know the rules before you play (and be aware of the consequences if you try to cheat).

Clarification on USCIS General Inquiry Mailbox

I blogged back in February about my experience trying to get answers through the USCIS General Inquiry Mailbox set up for Canadians to ask “general immigration questions”. I talked about my frustration with the response, which was basically “Contact CBP”.

A recent article posted by Lane Powell over at Lexology.com offers some insight and clarification on what the new email address is really for. From the article:

Not all inquiries can be handled through Canada@dhs.gov. For Canadians, many immigration issues and matters are processed at the U.S.-Canada border through a separate Homeland Security agency, Customs and Border Protection (“CBP”). For example, petitions for intracompany transfers from a foreign company to a related U.S. entity, and Trade NAFTA (“TN”) applications can be processed on a while-you-wait basis at U.S ports of entry. Because CBP is a separate agency from USCIS, port of entry-related questions likely cannot be answered through Canada@dhs.gov.

So really, the email response I received was the correct one; they couldn’t answer my questions because they’re not the right department to be forwarding those questions to.

Ah the tangled web that is the multiple departments within DHS.

Arizona’s Immigration Law and Canadians

Great article over on lexology.com by Veronica K. Choy talking about the effect Arizona’s new immigration law has on Canadians.

If you’re not familiar with the law, currently if you enter the US illegally then you are an illegal alien…but that’s at the federal level. Arizona passed a law making it illegal at the state level to be an illegal alien. This means that state and local law enforcement now has the ability to stop anyone where “reasonable suspicion exists that the person is an alien who is unlawfully present in the United States.”

From Veronica’s article:

Further, the law further states that a person is presumed to NOT be illegal if he/she is able to provide: (1) a valid Arizona driver’s license, (2) a valid Arizona Non-operating identification license, (3) a valid tribal enrolment card or other form of tribal identification or any valid US federal, state or local government issued identification (but only if the issuance of that identification is based upon proof of legal presence).

Which brings us to the critical question: “What Canadian, who is visiting Arizona on a temporary basis, would have any of the above listed documentation?”

I can answer that for you Veronica: Practically none! While this law is targeted at illegal aliens crossing over from Mexico, keep in mind that Canadians are just as foreign as anyone from any other country visiting the US, and laws like these can put us at risk of scrutiny and potential bouts of quality time with local law enforcement if *something* about us is deemed suspicious.

Think you can ignore this if you never visit Arizona? Do you visit Oklahoma, Texas, Utah, Maryland, and Colorado? Because according to the article those states are considering tougher immigration laws as well.

Have a read through the article and consider Veronica’s recommendations. And if you’re heading to Arizona, try not to look suspicious.

CBP Hunting for Eggs this Easter

First off, this is *not* an April Fools post. I really wish it were, but its not.

With Easter approaching, CBP officers will be on the lookout for a particular type of contraband coming in from Canada and Mexico. Cocaine? Heroin? Marijuana? No…the contraband we’re talking about is Kinder Surprise Eggs!

For those that aren’t familiar with them, Kinder Surprise eggs are hollow chocolate eggs that contain a yellow plastic container. Inside that container is a random toy. I grew up with these things, as did children from Mexico, Europe, and South America…but not from the USA.

It turns out that there are two reasons why the treats aren’t allowed in. For one, the US FDA labels it a choking hazard. For another, according to an article by K. Jessie Austin:

Aside from children potentially choking on the toys, the real reason Kinder Eggs are banned is the Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act of 1938. This Act prohibits the embedding of non-food items completely enclosed inside food items, unless the non-edible part has a functioning value. For example a lollipop or popsicle stick is not edible but is a useful handle. This Act was originally put into place to prevent the addition of hazardous items to processed food and has never been changed.

Luckily for the American public, CBP has been keeping a watchful eye out for these potential CoD’s (Confections of Death)! From a BrownsvilleHerald.com article:

Last year, CBP officers seized more than 25,000 chocolate eggs in more than 2,000 seizures.

So be wary fellow Canadians! You don’t want to be *that* guy or gal that gets kicked out of NEXUS for accidentally bringing a contraband chocolate egg to the border.

Related Articles

CBP Warns Against Chocolate Egg Smuggling
The Brownsville Herald

Why Kinder Eggs Are Banned in the US
AssociatedContent.com

Kinder Surprises: Banned in the U.S.A.
Canada.com

Kinder Surprise
Wikipedia.com