Latest news with #VeraEtches
Yahoo
15-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Avoid US or Take Burner Phones, Canada Executives Tell Staff
(Bloomberg) -- Major public institutions in Canada, including a pension management firm and a leading hospital, are advising staff against traveling to the US, marking a greater erosion in the country's longstanding trust with its neighbor. How Did This Suburb Figure Out Mass Transit? Even Oslo Has an Air Quality Problem NYC Tourist Helicopter Crashes in Hudson River, Killing Six Lisbon Mayor Wants Companies to Help Fix City's Housing Shortage $15 Million Fund Bets Leadership Training Can Improve Chicago Policing The Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario, one of Canada's top pediatric research hospitals, is recommending its staff avoid US trips. 'Due to the escalation of issues and volatility in the US, CHEO strongly encourages individuals to refrain from travel to that country at this time,' Chief Executive Officer Vera Etches said in a memo seen by Bloomberg News. A spokesperson for the hospital confirmed the contents of the memo. Alberta Investment Management Corp., a public pension fund that manages about C$180 billion ($130 billion), asked employees to stop non-essential business trips to the US, Bloomberg reported Monday. Aimco staff can no longer travel on business to attend US conferences or speaking engagements, but they can still make trips for board or investor meetings, according to people familiar with the matter. Arrivals of non-citizens to the US by plane declined almost 10% in March from a year earlier, according to data from the US International Trade Administration. Travelers are reacting to President Donald Trump's trade war and to stories of harsh detentions at US airports. The Canadian government, following the lead of other countries, recently expanded its travel advice to warn residents they should 'expect scrutiny' at the US border — including potential searches of mobile phones and other electronic devices. CHEO and Ontario's University of Waterloo have given advice to employees on how to minimize the information that can be accessed by border agents. If travel is necessary, CHEO staff should log out of hospital applications, ensure laptops don't include sensitive patient information and change passwords after any inspection, Etches' memo said. 'Be aware that US customs officers have the right to inspect electronic devices upon entering the US. This includes full access to anything on the device, including all social media accounts,' her memo stated. Staff were advised to leave their current devices at home and take a 'burner phone' — typically a device with little to no personal data on it. Members of the University of Waterloo's arts faculty who travel will be offered 'clean' laptops that allow users to access resources securely without information remaining on the laptop, according to excerpts of an April 2 memo seen by Bloomberg that didn't specifically mention the US. 'The guidance issued from our Arts Faculty Computing Office is consistent with our efforts to improve support for safeguarding Canadian research and applies to all travel, globally,' a spokesperson for the university said in an email. A French scientist was denied entry into the US apparently because the person had expressed a personal opinion on the Trump administration's research policy, the French government said in March. The US denied that, saying the scientist was carrying an electronic device that contained confidential information from a US laboratory. --With assistance from Layan Odeh, Paula Sambo, Melissa Shin and Augusta Saraiva. (Updates with latest US travel data in fourth paragraph and chart.) The Beauty Salon Recession Indicator GM's Mary Barra Has to Make a $35 Billion EV Bet Work in Trump's America Trump Is Firing the Wrong People, on Purpose How Mar-a-Lago Memberships Explain Trump's Tariff Obsession Cheap Consumer Goods Are the American Dream, Actually ©2025 Bloomberg L.P. Sign in to access your portfolio
Japan Times
15-04-2025
- Business
- Japan Times
Avoid U.S. travel or take burner devices, Canadian organizations tell staff
Some major public institutions in Canada, including a pension management firm and a leading hospital, are advising staff against traveling to the U.S., marking a greater erosion in the country's longstanding trust with its neighbor. The Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario, one of Canada's top pediatric research hospitals, is recommending its staff avoid U.S. trips. "Due to the escalation of issues and volatility in the U.S., CHEO strongly encourages individuals to refrain from travel to that country at this time,' CEO Vera Etches wrote in a memo. A spokesperson for the hospital confirmed the memo had been sent. Alberta Investment Management, a public pension fund that manages about 180 billion Canadian dollars ($130 billion), has asked employees to stop nonessential business trips to the U.S. Aimco staff can no longer travel on business to attend U.S. conferences or speaking engagements, but they can still make trips for board or investor meetings, according to people familiar with the matter. CHEO and Ontario's University of Waterloo have also given advice to employees on how to minimize the information that can be accessed by border agents. If travel is necessary, CHEO staff should log out of hospital applications, ensure laptops don't include sensitive patient information and change passwords after any inspection, Etches' memo said. "Be aware that U.S. customs officers have the right to inspect electronic devices upon entering the U.S.. This includes full access to anything on the device, including all social media accounts,' her memo stated. Staff were advised to leave their current devices at home and take a "burner phone' — typically a device with little to no personal data on it. Members of the University of Waterloo's arts faculty who travel will be offered "clean' laptops that allow users to access resources securely without information remaining on the laptop, according to excerpts of an April 2 memo that didn't specifically mention the U.S. The Canadian government, following the lead of other countries, recently expanded its travel advice to warn residents they should "expect scrutiny' at the U.S. border — including potential searches of mobile phones and other electronic devices. "The guidance issued from our Arts Faculty Computing Office is consistent with our efforts to improve support for safeguarding Canadian research and applies to all travel, globally,' a spokesperson for the University of Waterloo said in an email. A French scientist was denied entry into the U.S. apparently because the person had expressed a personal opinion on the Trump administration's research policy, the French government said in March. The U.S. denied that, saying the scientist was carrying an electronic device that contained confidential information from a U.S. laboratory.
