Can border agents search your laptop? Yes.

[xultar]

Can border agents search your laptop? Yes.


Stuart Romm boarded a plane in Las Vegas on February 1, 2004. When he got off the plane in British Columbia, Canada's Border Services Agency stopped Romm for questioning. After learning that Romm had a criminal background, Agent Keith Brown searched his laptop and discovered child porn sites in Romm's Internet history list. Canada then bundled Romm back onto a plane to Seattle, where US Customs agents had a chance to question him further.

They also conducted a forensic scan of his hard drive and turned up images of child pornography in Romm's browser cache. The images had been deleted (intentionally, it appears), but were recovered by an agent using software called "EnCase." Romm then admitted to investigators that he used Google to search for child pornography, and that his "therapy" had failed to help him quit.

The case made its way to a Nevada court, which found Romm guilty. An appeal of the case went to the Ninth Circuit in San Francisco, which was charged with deciding an important issue: can border patrol agents search laptops without a warrant and without probable cause? The court's ruling was handed down on Monday, and said that yes, agents can search laptops for any reason.

The court argued that the forensic analysis fell under the "border search exception to the warrant requirement." This exception was established by United States v. Montoya de Hernandez in 1985, and says that "the government may conduct routine searches of persons entering the United States without probable cause, reasonable suspicion, or a warrant." The court goes on to note that international airports count as border terminals, even if not physically located on a US border.

This isn't an especially radical ruling (Customs agents already have the authority to search luggage without cause), and such searches are taking place in other countries as well. Searching laptops, with their vast troves of personal (and usually legal) data, might feel more invasive to travelers, but it's a part of life in the 21st century. Don't be surprised if, on your next business trip, submitting your laptop to an X-ray scan is no longer enough.

http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20060727-7367.html

HOLEEE SHEEEIT!

[meisje]

1. was his prior child porn, is he a registered sex offender?

if so, I'm glad they searched it.

[Wonk]

10. His prior was soliciting sex from a minor over the internet

and he consented to the search of his laptop.

http://www.mass.gov/obcbbo/bd98-027.htm

[MoseyWalker]

2. What a two sided question

right to privacy vs catching scum

I've pondered this for a while, and lean towards the right to privacy. Not because I want scum to get away with their disgusting ways, but because I think there must be other, more first amendment method friendly ways of catching them.

So.

[hobbit709]

3. If you're that stupid

to not properly delete or encrypt ANYTHING you don't want to be known, then you deserve what you get.
They had a clown here in Austin recently who not only had child porn on his work laptop, he had it set as his wallpaper and a coworker turned his computer on. TSTL(Too Stupid To Live)

[acmejack]

7. Now that is a stupid individual.

Wallpaper? I am amazed that person was smart enough to breathe without assistance. Nowadays an investment in an encryption and deletion program is a must. If for no other reason than to make the snoops life harder! Twofish is my personal favorite, but there are lots of neat encryption goodies out there-use them!

[tridim]

4. That's total bullshit

Regardless of what they found, there was no probable cause to search his hard drive. His parole officer should be making sure he's not looking at child porn, not border agents.

What's next, searching everyone's cache for Anti-Bush sites?

[hobbit709]

5. Remember, it was CANADIAN customs

that sent him back to the US. They don't have the same constitution we do.

[MagickMuffin]

6. If anyone buys a pre-owned laptop,

be sure you buy a new hard drive just to be on the safe side.

What a nightmare it would be if someone didn't have the foresight to buy a new hard drive. Think of all the troubles that could ensue. And of course you would have to convince everyone that you are not guilty of anything considered illegal. SHEESH!

[acmejack]

8. Another right bites the dust.

"This isn't an especially radical ruling (Customs agents already have the authority to search luggage without cause)". A personal computer is a hell of lot more than luggage! this is complete and total crap, down the primrose path we go, privacy continues to be eroded bit by byte.

[Name removed]

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