Social media terms of use

The travel.gc.ca social media accounts are used as an extension of the material posted on Government of Canada websites. They are also meant to be platforms through which the Government of Canada can engage local audiences, answer relevant questions and reach Canadians abroad.

In no way do we verify or confirm either the accuracy of user comments or their compliance with the guidelines outlined in these Terms of Use or those of each social media platform. These Terms of Use apply to the branded travel.gc.ca pages and content on Facebook and Twitter.

Availability

We will update and monitor our social media accounts during local business hours (9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. ET). Updates to the accounts may be subject to downtime that is out of travel.gc.ca’s control, as the servers for these channels are managed by a third party. As such, we accept no responsibility for the channels becoming unresponsive or unavailable.

Content

If you follow our accounts, you can expect information and tips on destination safety and security, local laws and customs, entry requirements, health conditions and emergency contact information for Canadian offices around the world, as well as:

Post frequency

The number of posts will vary depending on the number of travel advisories, travel warnings and other relevant material published each day. During some periods, we may post more or less frequently than average. You should expect to see new posts on travel.gc.ca’s accounts during local business hours (9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. ET) Monday to Friday. Any activity during holidays, after core hours and on weekends would likely be related to emergency or urgent communications of significant value to our social media community.

Following

Travel.gc.ca’s social media accounts are open to the public, so anyone with Internet access can view the content posted. Users can also “like” or follow travel.gc.ca’s channels, thereby allowing travel.gc.ca’s posts and updates to appear on their home feeds.

We do not auto follow on Twitter, or “friend” or “like” any individual or business that proactively “likes” our Facebook account. We follow only selected accounts from our partners, stakeholders and the public. Our following you or “liking” you on social media does not imply endorsement of any kind, and we reserve the right to stop following any individual or organization that posts inappropriate content.

At this time, travel.gc.ca’s “Favourite Pages” include only other Government of Canada institutions and organizations that we believe are relevant to the mandate of our work. Favourite pages may include those of non-profit organizations, associations and other governmental agencies. The appearance of any particular page as a “favourite” of travel.gc.ca does not imply endorsement.

We will take steps to remove or block users who do not abide by these Terms of Use. 

Users may also be reported to a given social media channel if they do not comply with the service provider’s Terms of Use. You must have a valid account on Facebook or Twitter to “like” or follow the travel.gc.ca accounts.

Commenting policy

Travel.gc.ca will not tolerate comments that are offensive or abusive to an individual or organization. We do not discriminate against any views but we reserve the right to edit, hide, or remove any comments that:

Use of retweets, “like” and “share”

We may occasionally retweet, “like” or “share” content that we deem of value to our audience. This is especially likely to happen during a crisis situation, when time is of the essence in distributing critical information. This content may include material posted by other Government of Canada social media accounts and/or any other content determined to be relevant to our Facebook and Twitter community and of significant value, including research findings, statistics, relevant events and conferences, as well as cross-linking to information.

Links to other websites

From time to time, travel.gc.ca social media accounts may post links to websites that are not under the control of the Government of Canada. These links are provided solely for the convenience of users. The Government of Canada is not responsible for the accuracy or reliability of the content. The Government of Canada does not offer any guarantee in that regard, is not responsible for the information found through these links, and does not endorse the sites or their content.

Monitoring and response

We use social media so that we can listen to your questions and help you find answers to your travel-related questions. Feedback and interaction are encouraged for all of our social media channels. Posts, comments and mentions will be read on a regular basis by our social media team, and any helpful suggestions will be passed to the relevant people within the Government of Canada to improve our content and services. Posts and comments will be handled on a case-by-case basis and responded to when deemed appropriate.

The Government of Canada makes no commitment to respond to posts promptly, and users should be aware that posts in social media are generally not considered confidential information as they are being made in a public forum. For matters of an urgent, serious or personal nature, you should interact with the Government of Canada via confidential means such as email, phone, or private message function of the social media platform. Persons requiring emergency consular assistance should not request such assistance via social media but rather by phone or email.

If we feel a comment or question requires a response and/or greater level of detail, we may develop a formal response and distribute the information through other channels such as our website. We will pay attention to emerging themes and helpful suggestions and look forward to answering questions.

Travel.gc.ca and the Government of Canada are not responsible for any costs you may incur by interacting with our website or social media channels domestically or abroad more specifically, costs associated with or related to mobile long-distance charges, roaming charges, or foreign network charges.

Accessibility

Facebook and Twitter are third-party service providers. They are not bound by Government of Canada policies for web accessibility.

The Government of Canada is committed to achieving a high standard of accessibility, and is working to address issues with third-party service provider platforms. For more information on accessibility and Facebook please visit: https://www.facebook.com/help/273947702950567/?helpref=hc_fnav. For more information on accessibility and Twitter please visit: https://help.twitter.com/en/using-twitter/picture-descriptions. 

Official languages

Travel.gc.ca respects the Official Languages Act and is committed to ensuring that information of equal quality is available in both English and French. Travel.gc.ca tweets and posts are available in both official languages.

Through the very nature of the social media forum, content will vary between the English and French Twitter and Facebook accounts, particularly where messages and comments are concerned. Any tweets, retweets or Facebook posts that originate from travel.gc.ca will be made available in both official languages when it concerns both English and French communities. Responses to Twitter direct messages or @replies and Facebook comments or wall posts will be made in the official language of the user’s original post.

Users should be aware that some links direct users to sites of organizations or other entities that are not subject to the Official Languages Act and that these sources are only available in the language in which they are written.

Twitter.com and Facebook.com are available in multiple languages including English and French. To change this user preference, please check your account settings and adjust accordingly.

Privacy

Facebook and Twitter are third-party service providers not associated with the Government of Canada; you are encouraged to read the privacy policy of the platforms you use:

To protect your own privacy and the privacy of others, travel.gc.ca recommends that you do not include personal information in the comments or other content you post. Personal information includes home addresses and telephone numbers, photographs containing images of identifiable individuals, and any other information consisting of personal information as defined in Section 3 of the Privacy Act.

The Government of Canada does not use geolocation features of social media platforms to track individual movements or report geolocation information to other individuals, departments, agencies or privately held entities.

Information shared with travel.gc.ca on social media is subject to the provisions of the Access to Information Act and the Privacy Act, which means that the information may be accessed and disclosed in response to a request under either of these acts.

The personal information you provide to travel.gc.ca’s social media accounts is collected under the authority of Section 10 of the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade Act, in accordance with the Communications Policy of the Government of Canada. This information is being collected to capture conversations between you and travel.gc.ca via the department’s social media accounts. “Conversations” include questions and answers, comments, “likes”, retweets and other interactions where you provide feedback on content that travel.gc.ca has posted, or when travel.gc.ca provides you with information based on content that you post. The personal information collected is described in Personal Information Bank entitled Public Communications (DFATD PSU 914). Under the provisions of the Privacy Act, individuals have the right of access to, correction of, and protection of their personal information. Instructions for obtaining your personal information are provided on GAC’S Access to Information and Privacy page.

Copyright

Information posted by travel.gc.ca is subject to the privacy policies and terms of use of Facebook and Twitter. It is also subject to the Copyright Act of Canada. For more information, see the Important Notices page on the travel.gc.ca website.

Additional information

If you are looking for more information, please visit our website or get in touch with our team through social media or the contact us section.

Media inquiries

Reporters are asked to send questions to the appropriate individual in our Media Relations offices and refrain from submitting questions via social media.

Media representatives can contact travel.gc.ca through GAC’s Media Relations office during regular working hours (9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. ET) and on an emergency basis after regular working hours.

Thank you for taking the time to read this policy. We encourage your participation in our discussions and messages, and look forward to an active exchange of ideas.

Date modified: