How many laptops have border officials searched at U.S. borders? The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) wants to know.
The group filed a freedom of information (FOIA) request with U.S. Customs and Border Protection and the Homeland Security Department requesting any and all records dating back to January 1, 2007.
"Disclosure of the requested information ... will further public understanding of the government's expansive exercise of search authority over all travelers, including U.S. citizens, passing through the country's international borders," the letter reads.
"These searches implicate core Fourth Amendment interests, because they involve highly intrusive governmental probing into a traveler's most private information," it continued. "They also implicate the First Amendment, because searching or retaining a traveler's 'information' - especially the vast stores of information contained in a laptop or other electronic device - risks chilling the free exchange of ideas."
In May, DHS Secretary Janet Napolitano told the Senate Judiciary Committee that her department was reviewing its processes regarding border laptop searches and expected to release updated guidance in the next few months.
Sen. Russ Feingold, a Wisconsin Democrat, introduced legislation in September 2008 that would require reasonable suspicion before border agents could search laptops or other electronic devices, but it did not see any significant movement. He planned to re-introduce the bill, but said he had hoped to wait until after DHS released its guidelines.
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June 11, 2009 11:33 AM
The aclu is absolutely useless
June 11, 2009 11:42 AM
I don't think that kind of knee-jerk reaction is warranted, Richard. Just read the rest of the article. I, for one, would like to know how frequently people's laptops are being searched, even as they cross benign borders like between the United States and Canada.
At best, it's good public knowledge that the government would prefer to keep secret, and I could plan to take a laptop that I could only afford to lose when I travel abroad, and at worst it may illuminate unnecessary searches in an overblown need for "security." All of this discussion sparked by an organization that is "absolutely useless?" Not so much.
June 11, 2009 7:32 PM
Any person like myself who has been put through the ringer by Customs will applaud this. I'm a US citizen but I live in the Philippines. Customs found totally legal adult material on my computer and asked what it was for. Duh? Masturbatory purposes I told him. He then told me it was illegal to bring adult materials into the country. Wrong. Underage materials of course. No, he insisted anything pornographic was illegal. I responded that he doesn't know what he's talking about and further all materials on my computer came from one website whom I happen to know the owners of and I know exactly who and where their custodian of records is located at and that they're in full compliance with Federal Statute 2257. He asked what 2257 was. That's when I gave up and asked to see his supervisor. "Why?" he asked. Because I will not tolerate being accused of having underage pornographic material on my computer from someone who doesn't even know what the Federal law IS that dictates proof of age documentation.
After that he discovered I'm in internet marketing. "Spam and spyware then? That's what all you people do in the Philippines, right?" Of course there were threats to "have someone come down and inspect my computer" so when this spammer accusation came out I was done. I explained I'd rather be accused of having porn on my computer than be accused of being a spammer. I demanded to know if he was going to have someone do a forensic analysis of my computer so I could reschedule my connecting flight. I reiterated my demand to see his supervisor. "One moment sir" and he typed on his computer. Ten seconds later he handed me back my passport and told me I was free to go.
This is what a US citizen should have to endure? Of course this is how the customs agent was "fishing" for a response from me that would indicate I was hiding something. Obviously I had nothing illegal on my computer so I didn't give the responses he was hoping for. Further I was fortunate to be familiar with the laws surrounding what he was accusing me of. But that's NOT the norm. Some poor regular schmoe would likely get rattled instead of respectfully angry as I did. That "suspicious behavior" would "justify" a much more in-depth search of the guy's computer. Not that customs NEEDS that behavior! Remember they can do ANYTHING they want. If you refuse they can refuse entry into your OWN country!