New computerized border kiosks a security risk: Critics
BY PHILIP LING, CANWEST NEWS SERVICE


OTTAWA — Canadian residents arriving at the Vancouver International Airport can now use new computerized kiosks when they enter the country instead of going through the tradition meeting with border officers, a move some experts and critics say will compromise security.

These machines, quietly implemented this month by the Canada Border Services Agency as part of a two-year pilot project, are designed to "accelerate passenger screening and border processing," spokeswoman Hannah Mahoney said.

Canadian citizens and permanent residents who have a valid Canadian passport or permanent-resident card will be able to use the self-serve kiosks.

The Automated Border Clearance project replaces the customs-and-immigration process and allows users to bypass lines at inspection areas.

Residents will simply insert their travel document and customs-declaration card into the machine, follow the onscreen prompts and get a printed receipt. They will provide it to the customs officers, along with their travel documents for verification.

The kiosks "are quick and easy to use," the agency said, noting they "provide a faster option for travellers returning to Canada."

Although travellers will spend less time in front of CBSA officers, Public Safety Minister Vic Toews insists this new technology will not compromise border security.

"There is nothing we would knowingly do that would compromise our security," Toews told Canwest News Service. "We have to do it smart, we have to adopt appropriate technology, and we have to ensure that there are safety issues that are considered."

Following the failed Christmas Day bombing attempt on a flight from Amsterdam to Detroit, some experts argue that governments should be focusing on skilled staff trained to interpret human behaviour instead of investing in technological resources.

Toews insists the new technology is "simply supplementing" the work that is already being conducted by border officers.

"Maybe the argument is that CBSA officers should be doing everything by typewriters as opposed to computers because people will spend longer time in front of them?"

But Liberal public safety critic Mark Holland says the new program weakens the integrity of our border.

"The idea that we're going to replace human beings with machine is concerning, because there are obviously security implications there," he said. "We know that machines are unfortunately fallible."

He says he is upset the government didn't bring the issue to Parliament.

"I'm going to want this to be studied at committee. I'm going to want the opportunity to look at these measures and actually ask questions about how much it's going to cost, how effective it's going to be, what backup plans are going to be in place," he said.

The kiosks will be available for two years, CBSA says.

"This will enable both the CBSA and (the Vancouver airport) to evaluate the concept, validate projected costs and benefits, and fine-tune operational procedures and technology," Mahoney said.

Technology designed to ease the clearance process for business people and other frequent flyers already exists.

The NEXUS and Canpass Air programs allow pre-approved clearance, low-risk travellers to bypass lines at inspection areas by matching their iris to images stored in the "trusted traveller" database.

Each person's iris, the coloured ring surrounding the pupil, contains as many as 266 unique characteristics that computers can identify.

The new pilot project essentially expands these existing programs, but without a way to check if the traveller is the same person as the one on the document, said aviation and border security expert Mark Salter.

"What's the technology that means I can't take your passport and go through?" he questioned.

CBSA would not provide a detailed explanation, only saying the kiosks "have robust security features that read the information from the machine-readable zone of Canadian passports and permanent-resident cards and pass this information to the CBSA. The CBSA can then assess the risk level of travellers and identify any lost, stolen or fraudulent documents."

Salter notes the government automatically performs a risk assessment of each traveller before they even arrive in Canada.

CBSA receives and analyses Advance Passenger Information (API) and Passenger Name Record (PNR) data from air carriers and operators of aviation-reservation systems.

API data is collected at check-in and include name, date of birth, sex, citizenship or nationality and travel document information; PNR data is collected at the time of booking and includes information relating to a traveller's reservation and itinerary.

"The current Canadian border works on the idea of risk management. You facilitate people who are not problematic and that are known to you, and you spend your precious examination time on those who are unknown to you or those who are known to be problematic," explained Salter, a political studies professor at the University of Ottawa and editor of the 2008 book Politics at the Airport.

"Because 98 per cent of the people who cross the Canadian border are totally benign, are not posing any threat, this is a way of making the border both smart and efficient."

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