Lawsuit Questions Searches of Travelers’ Laptops, Digital Devices*
Travel Blog • Michael Yessis • 02.13.08 | 3:49 PM ET
The Electronic Frontier Foundation and Asian Law Caucus filed suit in a California court last week to seek the release of Department of Homeland Security records concerning searches of personal property, including computers and other digital devices, by the DHS’s Customs and Border Protection agents. From CNN: “The suit accuses customs agents of ‘lengthy questioning and intrusive searches’ and seeks clarification on the law that allows such searches.”
The Department of Homeland Security defends its policies allowing searches of, among other things, password-protected files.
The Electronic Frontier Foundation has posted the entire lawsuit.
Update Feb. 13, 5:29 ET: CNN has video of a television segment on the subject.
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Michael Yessis is the cofounder and coeditor-in-chief of World Hum.
Jack from eyeflare.com 02.14.08 | 7:04 AM ET
Isn’t this covered by the 4th amendment? The traveler would already be on U.S. soil and thus subject to U.S. laws and protections?
I saw that a number of companies are now recommending to travel with ‘blank’ laptops, completely without information, which would then be fetched via the internet once in the country, for security. Sounds like an eminently good idea in the current climate.
Fred Peterson 02.14.08 | 9:53 AM ET
BRAVO!
It’s time someone took the initiative to challenge those that take away our rights in the name of security. I think they have gone too far. If you fought for this country and your family members have died for this country, WHY ARE WE TO BE TREATED LIKE CRIMINALS?
Jack from eyeflare.com 02.14.08 | 10:17 AM ET
Well, here’s another thing I wrote about DHS <a >wanting all your 10 finger prints</a>!
It really seems that the people who are deciding these things don’t want visitors to come to the U.S. anymore.
john 04.25.08 | 8:22 PM ET
What about the issue of waiver? Some of these lawyers have given some privacy legal answers, especially regarding passwords, that if you give someone your password, then you’ve waived your privacy rights.
Even in cases where you don’t give DHS your passwords, couldn’t attempting to cross the border or get on a plane constitute a waiver of your privacy rights? It’s not as if these people are breaking down your door and going through your files. It’s you coming to them.
There has to be some diminished expectation of privacy there, if not complete waiver.