Appeals court reverses ruling: now border agents can search laptops without cause
From Threat Level:
Federal agents at the border do not need any reason to search through travelers' laptops, cell phones or digital cameras for evidence of crimes, a federal appeals court ruled Monday, extending the government's power to look through belongings like suitcases at the border to electronics.LinkThe unanimous three-judge decision reverses a lower court finding that digital devices were "an extension of our own memory" and thus too personal to allow the government to search them without cause. Instead, the earlier ruling said, Customs agents would need some reasonable and articulable suspicion a crime had occurred in order to search a traveler's laptop.
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What can they do if you have an encrypted file system? Can they force you to provide the password, and what happens if you refuse?
I'm quite certain they can threaten you with jailtime if you don't provide the password.
On the plus side, there's no way for them to find data that's just not ON your local drive. Network storage and secure connections for the win!
just tell'em you forget and they'll keep the laptop
Virtually all law firms seem to be going to blank new machines for trips and cloud computing.
takuan:
Be careful with that excuse. If you are running a system that keeps track of the last time a file was modified, it will be hard for anybody to believe that you don't know the password or where the key is kept if it was accessed recently. The best thing would be to use a filesystem that doesn't keep that tracking information or that indicates that a file wasn't recently used. Then your excuse would be plausible.
Not that I think that would help. They'd probably still arrest you for obstruction. You could then spend a couple thousand dollars to get your name cleared in court.
The only safe way will be to keep your files encrypted online and access them when you need them.
I'm quite certain they can threaten you with jailtime if you don't provide the password.
They can threaten whatever they want. However, no citizen is under any obligation to provide evidence that may incriminate them. Fifth Amendment, FTW.
IANAL.
this makes me sad.
Not to long ago, slashdot featured this story, about a man arrested while crossing the border. Apparently, they can't force you to divulge information that may cause you legal problems. As to where this stupid idea comes from, I plead the fifth.
On another note, someone told me about a nifty program that regularly scrambles the created, modified, and last used dates and access statistics on every file in your computer. Makes it hard for the forensics guys to tell what the heck you use your comp for, I guess. I'd really love to tell you what the program is called, but I've forgotten. I fall under the "too lazy to care about security" group, I'm afraid.
fifth amendment is gone man, don't you watch the news. The president's executive order on June 17th did away with the constitution.
you got NO rights.
http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2007/07/20070717-3.html
there are mountains of old, condemned laptops cluttering up the world. Broken,obsolete crap. Always carry on across the border. "This? Aw, it's busted, thought I could fix it. Ya want it?"
Mneptok, you're right that there's a fifth amendment issue here. However, the fifth amendment only protects testimonial self-incrimination (the government can't force you to testify against yourself) - not just any evidence. So they might be able to search your computer, or forcibly take a finger print, or even make you give a voice or handwriting sample, and not violate the fifth amendment, but can't force a confession or even a statement.
There's one Federal trial court case that says that being forced to give your password is a violation of the fifth amendment (yay!) - it's In re Boucher, available at http://www.volokh.com/files/Boucher.pdf (at a private website but I have no reason to believe it's not a true copy of the case).
But Boucher is just a District Court (lowest trial level court) case. The ruling today is from the next level up, the 9th Circuit, and it doesn't mention whether passwords are testimony (that question wasn't properly before them, but it would have been nice of them to tell us). So it's not really clear yet.
Maybe this is what you were saying anyway - I just wanted to clarify. But nice to meet you Mneptok.
This is a prime example of how the executive power under Republicans has interfered with the judiciary branch. They reached their people on the 9th Circuit and told them how to rule.
The Fourth Amendment is a dead letter, too. Starting with Nixon.
If the idea of somebody poking around your personal files offends you -- or your employer, who perhaps has plenty of trade secrets to conceal -- consider taking Truecrypt for a spin.
Another option is to leave your files at home, and access them remotely via a secure connection once you've arrived at your destination.
Rename the video file "Never Gonna Give You Up" to something suspicious like "Security bypass" and put it on your desktop.
Do the same thing with email attachments. Send it to an international address. You're Rickrolling the NSA!
How will this effect commercial interests? Surely this would apply to business documents or files, how can they look at that?
That seems extremely at odds with the ruling the Diebold didn't have to release it's voting machine source code because that would violate it's commercial interests.
If 'commercial interests' (those of W. and co.) can win out over snooping in that instance, is there a precedent to carry over?
In any case, I am now NEVER going to the US (or at least not until Obama gets in).
@#14:
"...or at least not until Obama gets in..."
Bwahahahaha!!!
Like THAT'S gonna happen...
This isn't about the 5th Amendment. When you are entering the United States, your Constitutional rights just don't apply. I'm a card-owning (I don't have enough space in my wallet to be a card-carrying) member of the ACLU, and I'm OK with cause-less searching of property at border stations. It makes sense that the government has control over what crosses its borders. However, I don't think that they should be able to compel you to offer a password, and if you don't, keep the laptop. If they don't plan on keeping the laptop before you give them a password, they shouldn't be able to keep it after you refuse to give the password.
I just like the idea of mountains of e-waste piling up at Customs. Hell, bring all your old towers, everything.
There are a jillion ways for a half determined person to hide information from scrutiny on a laptop. Rename word files as spreadsheets. Dump them on DVDs and write 'VIRUS?' on them in red pen. Put them in unlikely places and make them look like they belong. If you want to hide data it's ridiculously easy.
ummmm, kinda totally off topic but vaguely blowy-uppy security related: instead of machining copper plate to form bowls for self-forming projectile charges, would it work to use thin sheets (say eight inch?) over a six inch pipe stub with a vacuum tank and dump valve to form the meniscus using atmospheric pressure? and then build them in lamination to the desired thickness? anyone know if that would work? Theoretically?
ANYWAY the point is cursory inspection isn't going to discover anything useful. It's like looking for tax dodgers by inspecting everyone's wallet. This is a waste of time unless it's merely to intimidate honest people.
I'D look in your wallet anytime, Rossindetroit....
Ask these dudes your explosives machining questions:
http://www.pbase.com/montana_aardvark/names2008
It was a fun show.
uuuuhhh..sweet sweet machinist porn mmmmmmmmm!
Rule 34 at work again. All those smooth oily surfaces. And the aroma of unfiltered gasoline. It takes me back...
inflatable oil can???
http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.bareunderthere.com/catalog/9630_lg.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.bareunderthere.com/servlet/the-8448/fine-lingerie,-sexy-adult/Detail&h=432&w=371&sz=42&hl=en&start=6&um=1&tbnid=PdJmU5JIng1WxM:&tbnh=126&tbnw=108&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dsexy%2Bgirl%2Bwrench%26um%3D1%26hl%3Den%26safe%3Doff%26rls%3DGGGL,GGGL:2006-32,GGGL:en%26sa%3DN
Lube Girl costume by Elegant Moments. Too refined for me by half.
30 weight?
Now you're just being crude
sorry, let me get a fresh filter
Create a small TrueCrypt volume, 10MB. Name it whatever you wish. Gladly give them the passphrase, which is "I do not consent to having my privacy violated by thug henchmen of a renegade state". Inside are 5000 photos of your middle finger. 5000 photos which will have to be checked for steganography.
Regular Constitutional rights haven't existed at the border for a long time. This is not a surprising result.
Read some more:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Border_search_exception
I allus hide a stoat up me colon to gie the revooners sumat to worry
I calls this un "Trixy"
http://www.tuxxie.org/pics/stoat.jpg
I thought that stoat sandwich tasted funny.
@Insert #16 - the "border exception" (what #31 Doorframe is talking about) is an exception to the fourth amendment (specifically the warrant requirement). The fifth amendment and most other Constitutional protections still apply even at the border (in theory).
But you're right, the opinion Mark's talking about isn't examining the 5th amendment at all - the password issue has yet to be decided by a high court, as far as I know.
All the Constitutional protections seem to be shrinking, of course, and none expanding.
Actually, you could just delete any sensitive files just before crossing the border and then undelete them after. Why go to the trouble of encrypting when all that does is put up a big sign that says "Please detain me for X hours"?
Or put everything on a thumbdrive and then hide that somewhere discretely. No, that would fail because hiding, again, says you have a reason to hide. Just delete the files off the thumbdrive and recover them later.
Or put the files on an extra SD disk (or whatever your camera uses) put a few pics on the disk but delete the files and recover them later.
Okay, for those of you assuming you HAVE to divulge your password to the goons, I say again TRUECRYPT.
It has a fairly easy way to have a double-mountable encrypted disk image. You mount your encrypted file/image (aka enter your password), and you see one set of files. You do the same thing, but enter a different password for the same encrypted file, and a completely different set of files are available. It is called a hidden volume, and is stored in the "random" noise at the end of a regular encrypted disk image, so it is completely undetectable.
The only problem with a hidden volume is that if the protection option is not chosen, modifying the open volume may permanently damage the hidden volume, but by clicking the protection option you are admitting there is a hidden volume to protect.
yahh, I just write everything in a little notebook and let them fiddle with the computer
* Fourth Amendment – Protection from unreasonable search and seizure.
The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.
And yet they tell us "the terrorists hate us for our freedoms."
Yet another reason to not enter the US.
I mean, it's one thing to go looking for physical objects, but looking through your files is insane. What the hell are they going to find? The formula for how to make cocain? A lot of porn? Maybe the TV series you plan to watch on your 15hr plane trip?
The entire concept is assinine.
just how qualified are the people doing the snooping at recognizing ANYTHING?
TSA swipes your stuff
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/24187702/
@40 I think they're supposed to be looking for a file labelled "MY PLANS TO BLOW UP THE WHITE HOUSE" and the like. Although formulas for illegal drugs will probably do nicely, too, and if the RIAA and its ilk have anything to with it, your TV series or your mp3s might too. Anything to show you're an enemy in the Wars on Things That Aren't Valid Opponents.
Your huge stash of porn is just fine, though, as long as it doesn't involve kids.
@11
"This is a prime example of how the executive power under Republicans has interfered with the judiciary branch."
Sorry, the Dems are to blame on this too. Many have voted for policies, others were lackluster in their opposition.
Blaming either party is pointless -- they're all complicit in one way or another.
For those of you who haven't used TrueCrypt before, visit www.truecrypt.org. While it's been mentioned in the comments already, one thing that hasn't been mentioned is its ability to encrypt unpartitioned space.
So what does this mean to you? Say you have a 200gB hard drive in your laptop. Instead of giving all 200gB to your operating system, you create a 100gB partition and format as NTFS, and leave the remaining 100gB unpartitioned. Inside Windows, a snoop will only see the partitioned drive and unless specifically looking for it, will not see the unused space. You think some border patrol goon is going to know this? Not likely.
In addition to that, TrueCrypt provides plausible deniability by allowing you to give encrypted space two passwords. One will mount a specified amount of space that you can load with files that you would likely want to be encrypted but that are ultimately harmless/legal (e.g., fake e-mails about an affair), the other will mount the rest of the space with what you really want to hide.
TrueCrypt can also run without needing to be installed so it can be kept on a USB key. Get a mini one for your keychain and don't install TrueCrypt on your laptop, and you've removed the chances of the US Gubmint from seeing all that Unicorn porn you don't want your significant other to see.
You can be asked to open up your briefcase, so I guess opening a computer is about the same thing. I guess you could use online sources for software apps and storage, using your laptop as little more than a keyboard. If they want the access for your net-based data they would have to get a court order and present that to the site holding your stuff.
"TSA swipes your stuff"
Infect your machine with a keylogger or whatever, that you control. TSA swipes your laptop. Later, you swipe the TSA thief's passwords or whatever other personal info he-she puts on it.