NZ Customs Wants Power To Require Passwords

First time accepted submitter Orange Roughy writes New Zealand customs are seeking powers to obtain passwords and encryption keys for travelers. Supposedly they will only act to obtain credentials if it was acting on 'some intelligence or observation of abnormal behaviour.' People who refuse to hand over credentials could face up to three months jail time. From the story: "Customs boss Carolyn Tremain has told MPs the department would only request travellers hand over passwords to their electronic devices if it had a reason to be suspicious about what was on them. The department unleashed a furore last week when it said in a discussion paper that it should be given unrestricted power to force people to divulge passwords to their smartphones and computers at the border. That would be without Customs officials having to show they had any grounds for suspicion."

Comments

Strong public relations

[Futurepower(R)]

Kills tourism to N.Z.

Re: Strong public relations

[Karmashock]

You can have hidden encrypted information.

You're starting an arms race. Cisco is already shipping routers to dead drops in a bid to avoid NSA interceptions.

The entire tech ecosystem is reacting to increased surveillance.

The average user you will get it. But person with something to hide? They'll install a bit of encryption software that will not only encrypt the data but make it look like it doesn't even exist.

And if there is something you have a bogus encrypted file that is decrypted instead.

There are lots of means of dealing with this stuff.

Re: Strong public relations

[Anonymous Coward]

People like you made Nazi Germany a reality. Good job.

Re: Strong public relations

[Anonymous Coward]

Before my next visit to NZ I'll change my phone's password to "fuckyouretardednzcustomsofficers-youimbecilepuppetstotheusa"

Feel free to use it yourself :-)

"not its intention", hah, hah!

[whoever57]

Although the proposed power would let Customs request passwords from any traveller or do random checks on electronic devices, Tremain told a parliamentary select committee that was not its intention.

Instead, the department would only use the power if it was acting on "some intelligence or observation of abnormal behaviour", she said.

Protip: whenever some government official says that they won't use their power for some purpose, you know that it will be used in exactly that way or for that purpose. Case in point, RIPA in the UK, which has been used (abused) in cases related to petty crime in exactly the way it was originally claimed it would not be used.