Want the Gov't to Read Legal Docs? Travel Abroad With a Laptop
It may come as a surprise to a number of lawyers, but the government can legally read what’s on a foreign traveler’s laptop. So, like other individuals frequenting the international airways, attorneys would be well-advised to leave their personal computers at home unless they’re clean of any documents they might not want to have Uncle Sam taking a look at.
“While law enforcement authorities must have a search warrant to peer inside a computer in your home or office, they don’t need one to look in your luggage or other possessions if you’ve left the country and are re-entering it,” reports the Philadelphia Inquirer. “Customs and Border Protection agents can seize and keep your laptop, cell phone, digital camera or other electronic device until they determine that you aren’t a security threat.”
Such laptop searches are controversial, and Sen. Russ Feingold (D-Wis.), who chairs a Senate Judiciary subcommittee on the Constitution, civil rights and property rights, has called for Congress to enact a law protecting individuals against what he termed a “gross violation of privacy,” reports the Washington Times.
In the meantime, however, even though the chance of having a laptop seized may be slim, the consequences are potentially Draconian for those affected:
Tech News World writes of “a growing chorus of complaints over Customs seizing laptops and holding them for weeks at a time. It is unclear what type of forensic analysis they put the devices through, but it is widely suspected that they copy hard drives.”
In written testimony to Feingold’s committee, Jayson Ahern, deputy commissioner of the federal Customs and Border Protection agency, says searchers “protect information that may be discovered during the examination process, as well as private information of a personal nature that is not in violation of any law.” He says the agency also conducts “a regular review and purging of information that is no longer relevant,” reports the Baltimore Sun.
Additional coverage:
Technology (Los Angeles Times): “Welcome back to the United States. Now let’s see what’s on your laptop”
New York Sun: “Customs Agents Copy Travelers’ Laptop, Phone Data”
