Fri Apr 22, 2022 – 4:29 pm EDT
OTTAWA (LifeSiteNews) — A bill introduced in the Senate would lower the threshold for when border agents would be allowed to search and seize electronic devices of travelers entering Canada.
On March 31, Bill S-7, proposed by Justin Trudeau-appointed Senator Marc Gold, passed its first reading in the Senate. The controversial legislation would allow border agents to “examine documents, including emails, text messages, receipts, photographs or videos, that are stored on a personal digital device.”
According to the bill’s text, a person’s private property may be subject to search and seizure if an officer feels there is “reasonable general concern” that a Customs Act violation has occurred and that the device in question may be relevant to the evidence gathering process.
In an interview with the Wire Report, Canadian Civil Liberties Association director of privacy Brenda McPhail said the vague “reasonable general concern” wording in the bill presents a “shockingly low and completely legally novel threshold” that could threaten the privacy rights of Canadians.
“The lower the threshold for these searches, the easier it is for individual officers exercising their discretion to use their search authority in ways
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