2.
Systems
Immigration
Control
(IC)
Manual-
Chapter
1-
Security Screening
Process
Manual
Protected B
IRCC officers have access to a number
of
systems and tools that assist them
in
making
admissibility determinations.
While some systems have shared access, the NSSD and screening partners rely on additional
tools
~nd
syste~s
to ass
1
ss temporary and permanent resident applications referred
by
IRCC for
securIty screemng.
The following systems are available to decision-makers
in
Canada and overseas. These systems
do not represent an exhaustive list
of
databases and tools available to the NSSD and partners to
conduct security screening.
2.1.
The
Global Case
Management
System (GCMS)
Note: The Field Operational Support System (FOSS) was decommissioned in November 2015.
Essential information including client histories and prior enforcement action,
is
now available
in
the Global Case Management System (GCMS). GCMS also includes important indicators
regarding potential threats and inadmissibilities, which may assist officers
in
making
admissibility determinations.
•
All officers responsible for screening foreign nationals must check GCMS prior to sending
a screening request
to
partners.
•
Checks must be conducted regardless
of
whether the client
is
known to the processing
office or whether previous systems checks were non-resultant. These checks are important
since information in the systems may change quickly.
•
The
CBSA maintains
an
extensive
number
of
Ell
and
lookouts. These
lookouts
are
important
tools available to officers in making well-informed decisions.
It
is
important
to indicate in a screening request
sent
to the NSSD,
the
presence
of
lookouts relating to a
particular
individual.
•
To accurately reflect the action taken on a particular file, officers must record system
checks and the results in GCMS. These remarks will assist those officers responsible for
conducting follow-up activities on a particular person to quickly identifY what actions have
been taken thus far.
ASFC
-
Divulgation
en
vertu
de
la
loi
sur
l'Acces
a
I'information
3.
Open source research
Immigration Control (IC)
Manual-
Chapter
J-
Security Screening
Process
Manual
Protected B
Officers are encouraged
to
conduct open source research using the internet, which can provide
significant insight on organizations, country conditions and other information to support
admissibility decisions.
3.1.
Assessing internet-based sources for reliability
The internet
is
an excellent research tool that
is
generally fast and easy to access. However, it
is
important to consider the reliability
of
sources. For example, Wikipedia
is
not considered a
reliable source.
Officers should use their own jUdgment
as
to whether a particular site
is
reliable, keeping
in
mind that when making an admissibility determination on a specific application, IRCC officers
will have to substantiate that the person(s)
is
(are) inadmissible and,
in
some cases, defend the
decision
in
a court
of
law. To this end, when making reference
to
information from a specific
website, officers should record the website link as well as the date on which they accessed the
website.
3.2.
When
evaluating
if
a website
is
reliable, officers should consider the following:
1.
Authority
and
reputation
of
the
author
a.
Who are the authors and/or publishers
of
the website?
b.
How
reputable are the authors and/or publishers? Are they subject matter experts?
c.
Is the site the original site
of
a known paper periodical, newspaper or organization?
d.
Is information about the authors and/or producers easily available on
th~
site itself?
e.
Are contact details, i.e. email and postal addresses provided on the site?
f.
How
is
the site funded (source
of
financing?) (goes
to
bias).
2.
Scope
and
intended audience
a. What is the intended subject?
b.
Who
is
the intended audience (target/purpose
of
the site)?
3.
How
does
the
source
compare
to
other
sources?
a. How does the source compare
to
other sites dealing with similar subject matter?
Comparelcontrast depth
of
how subject matter
is
treated.
4.
Coverage
of
subject
a.
How
complete and reliable
is
the information?
b. What other resources (print and non-print) are available on the particular country you
are researching?
c. What is the relative value
of
the site
in
comparison to the range
of
information/resources
available on the country you are researching?
ASFC
-
Divulgation
en
vertu
de
la
loi
sur
l'Acces
a
I'information
