Summary Report of the Meeting of the National Security Transparency Advisory Group – January 19, 2023

Held via Videoconference

Members Present:

• Lesley Soper (co-chair)
• Jeffrey Roy
• Daniel Jean
• Stéphane Leman-Langlois
• Mary Francoli (co-chair)
• Chantal Bernier
• Lorelei Williams
• Rizwan Mohammad
• Amira Elghawaby

Members Absent:

• Jillian Stirk
• John Ariyo

Meeting Theme:

• “The Use of Digital Tools in the Protection of National Security”

Invited Guests and Speakers:

• Scott Millar – Vice President, Strategic Policy Branch, Canada Border Services Agency
• John Ommanney - Associate Vice-President, Travellers Branch, Canada Border Services Agency

National Security Community Members Present (as observers):

Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA), Communications Security Establishment (CSE), Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre of Canada (FINTRAC), Global Affairs Canada (GAC), Public Safety Canada (PS), Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP), Transport Canada (TC), Canadian Security and Intelligence Service (CSIS), Treasury Board Secretariat of Canada (TBS), Canadian Armed Forces (CAF), Department of National Defence (DND).

Agenda:

• Opening of the Meeting and Roll Call
• Presentation with the Canada Border Services Agency: “CBSA's Traveller Modernization Initiative”
• Private NS-TAG Discussion

Meeting Summary:

The twenty-third virtual NS-TAG meeting took place on January 19, 2023, on the theme “The Use of Digital Tools in the Protection of National Security”. The session focused on the Canada Border Service Agency (CBSA) Traveller Modernization initiative. The session was then followed by a closed internal discussion amongst NS-TAG members. During the closed internal discussion, NS-TAG members agreed that the next in-person meeting should take place in Ottawa, and that additional representation from the private sector would be preferred in future discussions. The members also determined that it would be useful to allocate more time for internal discussions to successfully debrief and adapt new strategies and recommendations.

Key Takeaways of Guests' Presentation and of the Discussion Session:

• The meeting began with guest speakers from the CBSA delivering a presentation on the Traveller Modernization initiative. The objective of the presentation was to explain the initiative to NS-TAG members, and to seek their advice, particularly with respect to transparency, privacy, and security issues as well as useful measures to mitigate bias.  
• The Traveller Modernization initiative is a multi-year project that seeks to provide a more efficient border experience for travellers where they can leverage digital tools to communicate with the CBSA in advance of arrival. The concept is underpinned by biometrically anchored identity verification and would be completed on a voluntary basis.
• The initiative is meant to facilitate the movement of low-risk travellers by providing more time for border officers to focus on higher-value activities and unknown or higher-risk travellers.
• During the presentation, the CBSA emphasized that access to the data collected will only be provided to individuals who have a concrete need to see it to perform their work duties. In such cases, only relevant data will be provided, and personal information will be either masked or removed if considered unnecessary. Additionally, data usage will be monitored with audit logs to ensure it is being used appropriately.
• When asked if the initiative will be similar to the ArriveCan app, the CBSA noted that while the ArriveCan app will be the foundation, the Traveller Modernization app will be entirely voluntary. Guest speakers from the CBSA added that work is underway to make the Traveller Modernization app similar to a usual banking experience.
• NS-TAG members pointed to the potential issue of unequal access to such technology as a useful reminder to consider before implementation.
• The discussion session concluded with NS-TAG members emphasizing how critical it would be for the CBSA to conduct proactive engagement to ensure the Traveller Modernization app's success, to manage public perceptions and expectations and to foster transparency and build greater public trust.