181–190 of 257 posts
Q: do customs agents (in either USA or Canada) have the right to ask for social network passwords, even if you don't cross with a device? e.g. Facebook? Gmail? what about Dropbox? I suppose you could try "I don't have an account on that" but what if they know you do?
"what if they know you do?" -- how?
Don't be fooled, Canadian border patrol proudly engages in this as well. I was recently driving across the border to Montreal on vacation when Canadian border agents, in addition to searching my car and personal belongings, demanded to see my cell phone and turn over the password. I simply asked why, since I didn't think I was doing anything suspicious, at which point the agent angrily responded "because I can and no…
On entering Canada, I've been asked to open my laptop, turn it on, enter an administrator level password, and then search for *.jpg. Everything shows up -- cached browser images as well. The agent asked a lot of questions, but I was allowed to pass eventually. This all took place out in the open, where they would normally collect a form from you. I immediately started using TrueCrypt with the plausible deniability op…
These searches, if true, have nothing to do with border security and more to do with fishing for anything and everything they can charge you with once they aren't encumbered with warrants and courts and due process.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
> I'm so embarrassed how America treats people entering the U.S. The contrast between entering other civilised countries and entering the United States is one of the things I hate about travelling. Every other country I visit manages to control its borders and have a pleasant, polite entry process, but not my own! I've seen border agents scream and holler at people who clearly don't understand English: there's just n…
Have you ever travelled to Canada? I've had a much worse experience with their border police than I have with the US and I'm a Canadian!
My theory is I think it's almost a relief when border police deal with a fellow Canadian. If it's someone from the US I bet 99% of their worry is they have a gun.
But US customs seem to have a chip on their shoulder as if they want to torment you.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
No, it would not be a 'PR storm'. This kind of stuff happens all day, every day, at every one of the major border crossings. You'd be denied entry and that would be the end of it. "I might end up waiting weeks or months, though." The American embassy will tell you there's nothing they can do, and you'd be waiting in perpetuity in a hotel on the American side of the border.
Exactly. This topic has come up on HN before and we've had HNers tell even more horrifying stories than today and nothing comes of it. Getting an attitude and trying to appeal to your legal rights will just embolden some of these powertripping authority figures. It's best to come prepared, either with a TrueCrypt plausible deniability type solution or just by wiping / clearing out your OS beforehand. I chose the latt…
The thing is, you may not have such 'rights', at least not in a legal sense. I suggest the duderinos at the border are well aware of what they can, and cannot do.
If you have a beef, it's with Homeland Security or Congress, not the border guy.
And if you're entering a foreign country ... well, your legal rights are pretty thin. So there's that.
"Keeping America safe and enforcing our nation’s laws in an increasingly digital world depends on our ability to lawfully examine all materials entering the U.S.," What does "lawfully" even mean in this context? It's one of those words used specifically to excuse legally questionable practices at best, and outright illegal or unethical behavior by people in positions of authority, like parallel construction and evide…
It's also absurd given the quantity of data that "enters the US" over the wires.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
Um, no. The Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms specifically grants rights to everyone and not just Canadian citizens. Except in a few cases like mobility rights where the right is specifically restricted to citizens. A non citizen can be refused entry but they absolutely have a right to not be arbitrarily detained.
Sadly, that's not true. Read this paper titled "How the Charter Has Failed Non‐Citizens in Canada – Reviewing Thirty Years of Supreme Court of Canada Jurisprudence". [1] http://www.fondationtrudeau.ca/sites/default/files/u5/articl...
But I'm not seeing where "non citizens have no rights" or the court says that whole sections cannot be applied to non-citizens and the word everyone doesn't mean what we think. In fact I'm seeing some rulings where the court acknowledged for example that equality rights do apply to non citizens.
I am seeing a case where they allowed someone to be detained, but it seems they found a way to decide that the restriction was reasonable and therefore constitutional, but they didn't decide that non-citizens cannot benefit from this right.
Don't be fooled, Canadian border patrol proudly engages in this as well. I was recently driving across the border to Montreal on vacation when Canadian border agents, in addition to searching my car and personal belongings, demanded to see my cell phone and turn over the password. I simply asked why, since I didn't think I was doing anything suspicious, at which point the agent angrily responded "because I can and no…
Don't be fooled, Canadian border patrol proudly engages in this as well. I was recently driving across the border to Montreal on vacation when Canadian border agents, in addition to searching my car and personal belongings, demanded to see my cell phone and turn over the password. I simply asked why, since I didn't think I was doing anything suspicious, at which point the agent angrily responded "because I can and no…
Some risk averse people are following one rule: Do not carry any electronics at any border crossing. It's a hostile territory.
How is a cell phone any different?
Asking for passwords to Facebook accounts or other information that isn't on your phone, now that's another story.
When crossing the border... backup and factory reset. Don't carry anything with you over the border you don't want customs officers looking at. I just hang onto one of my older phones to use when I travel.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
Indeed, from now on I will back up my phone to the cloud, wipe it before going over a border, then reinstalling after. It's the only sane thing to do.
Here's the thing though; you can do that, and it'll protect your data, but any nation can still prevent your entry for exactly that reason. "Oh, you brought an empty phone? Give me access to your cloud account. No? Ok, you're never entering our country. Bye."
Don't be fooled, Canadian border patrol proudly engages in this as well. I was recently driving across the border to Montreal on vacation when Canadian border agents, in addition to searching my car and personal belongings, demanded to see my cell phone and turn over the password. I simply asked why, since I didn't think I was doing anything suspicious, at which point the agent angrily responded "because I can and no…
I normally wipe my devices while crossing the border, phone and laptop but one time while I was doing a much shorter round trip, I decided not to wipe my phone.
on my way into Canada, i was identified for enhanced screening at like 10pm, After waiting an hour, the agent asked for my return flight ticket, which I didn't have printed. so it's late, im dangerously close to missing my connection, and I think, "Oh! I probably have the confirmation email on my phone!"
So i pull out my trusty CIA surveillance device, unlock it, and pull up the confirmation email. The agent then takes it directly out of my hands and walks into the back. I don't know how long he was gone (long enough to miss my flight) but when he came back he had a bunch of questions about a girl I had been texting and who had sent me some provocative photos. I don't know that helped Canada's national security but sure, whatever.
To be fair, the US CBP has never taken any devices from me but they do stop me routinely and dump my bag and ask all sorts of ridiculous questions. I used to fight it but now I just sit/stand quietly until they are done. On my latest trip, i guess I was too polite so the agent decided that was suspicious. His face got all twisted as he began asking me the questions.
There are no rights at the border so don't cross with anything.