Whatever You Do, Don’t Cross That Border!
August 3, 2008 · By Adam Dyck
So there you are, driving towards the glorious America, typing away in your laptop, or perhaps making a note of something in your PDA. At the border check, a big guy in a uniform comes around, and asks if you’re carrying a laptop or any other electronic device. Sure you are, you say. After all, what could go wrong?
Next thing you know, your laptop is confiscated and brought to an off-site location, your data is being distributed to third party, non-government agencies, and they don’t even need to have any suspicion of wrong doing on your part. At all.
But don’t worry, you’ll get your laptop back after “an indefinite amount of time”, and all copies of its contents will be destroyed. All the private entities are allowed to do is keep any and all notes they make of your laptop and anything you have saved on it. That’s not a breach of civil liberties, is it?
Somewhere, Thomas Jefferson is rolling over in his grave.
Agreed. There is a certain amount of paranoia that is “ok” but it just goes overboard here. It’s understandable too check an electronic for odd wiring, bombs, substances, and etc. This though is a breach of privacy and an international nuisance. If there was details within an electronic device that linked too some sort of terrorist action or smuggling endeavor, the action would most definitely continue without the said electronic. Also, by the time authorities actually got around too inspecting, decrypting, and analyzing the data within the electronic, whatever information is found may be obsolete by the time it is found. So really all who cross the border are being handed a public nuisance. Also, would it make any difference which side of the border the electronic resided. It would probably serve its purpose either way.