Wyden To Introduce Bill To Prohibit Warrantless Phone Searches At Border (onthewire.io)

Trailrunner7 quotes a report from On the Wire: A senator from Oregon who has a long track record of involvement on security and privacy issues says he plans to introduce a bill soon that would prevent border agents from forcing Americans returning to the country to unlock their phones without a warrant. Sen. Ron Wyden said in a letter to the secretary of the Department of Homeland Security that he is concerned about reports that Customs and Border Patrol agents are pressuring returning Americans into handing over their phone PINs or using their fingerprints to unlock their phones. DHS Secretary John Kelly has said that he's considering the idea of asking visitors for the login data for their various social media accounts, information that typically would require a warrant to obtain. "Circumventing the normal protection for such private information is simply unacceptable," Wyden said in the letter, sent Monday. "There are well-established procedures governing how law enforcement agencies may obtain data from social media companies and email providers. The process typically requires that the government obtain a search warrant or other court order, and then ask the service provider to turn over the user's data."

Comments

has it come to this

[supernova87a]

My first question is why this has to be a bill, when through the normal course of judicial process such evidence would be tossed out by courts for being improperly obtained.

Then I remembered that in the area of national security and border / immigration enforcement, the executive branch has pushed their own discretion so far that Congress / courts really do have to put protections like this into law for it to be heeded. Basically they have been cut out of the loop of immigration and border enforcement as just bystanders, because the executive branch has all the guns, and it only comes to Congress/courts' attention when someone makes it in (and isn't kicked out immediately) and survives long enough to file a habeus petition.

The real check and balance needed would be for border agents and officials who abuse their authority to be penalized for it.

Re:has it come to this

[Anonymous Coward]

How do you prove that a border agent or office has abused their authority? I have personally seen CBP agents going through a person's phone and their private photos. They were sitting in the booth going through them while I waited but they did not realize that I can see what they are doing through the reflection in the glass on the booth.

They have also attempted to open my devices when I am stopped for a random check. I get the alerts in my e-mails and on my watch.

The point is with no oversight or prerequisites to make border guards follow, with required outcome, then abuse will be rampant. The guards see a good looking male or female and force them to unlock the phone just to gain access to their most private moments. These are done behind closed doors and can be copied without permission and are nothing more than abuse of power.

Re:And for everyone else...?

[ASDFnz]

while completely ignoring any intrusion/violation of the rights of visitors.

Speaking as someone from another country (New Zealand) who has visited the US on several occasions (mostly social) I can tell you it has certainly become an issue.

Recently I was planning to attend an event in Las Vegas (hobby related). My first thought was to the invasive border security that is already in place but I though why not and decided to go anyway.

Others decided differently, in the end the event in Las Vegas was canceled because of the invasive border protection and we all went to Australia instead.