Laptops at U.S. border: No privacy rights - Wed, 25 Oct 2006

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on_strike_usaexpat

Jedi
Laptops at U.S. border: No privacy rights
By Joe Sharkey
The New York Times

A lot of business travelers are walking around with laptops that contain private corporate information that their employers really do not want outsiders to see.

Until recently, their biggest concern was that someone might steal the laptop. But now there's a new worry: the laptop will be seized or its contents scrutinized at customs and immigration checkpoints upon entering the United States...
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(1) Use Mac OS X, Linux or other Unix derivative as almost all tools for and familiarity by CBP will be with Winblows.
(2) Use PGP disk for your sensitive data.
(3) Use whole disk, on-the-fly, encryption like in Mac OS X.
(4) You can refuse to reveal any password or passphrase though you may be detained and released after a number of hours if a US citizen. Non-US citizens, well... A better strategy would be to have your machine boot up into a basic "dummy" user account by default or upon request of your "password" that is actually not your regular, real user account. This should satisfy most pathocrats working for the government at that level.

I'm sure others out there can chime in with more advice.

My laptop has never been scrutinized by CBP and I have only been sent to secondary inspection 1 time in the 11 times I've visited the States since I quietly became an expat. I will inform the group if this trend changes.
 
on_strike_usaexpat said:
Laptops at U.S. border: No privacy rights
By Joe Sharkey
The New York Times
Click to expand...
It'd be nice to have the whole story and a link...
 
Yeah, I read this on the SOTT main page. Curious that the story
is repeatedly looping. Is this a 'causual' or 'hyptonic' subliminal
message? :|

I counted 4 loops of 'A lot of business travelers..."
 
on_strike_usaexpat said:
(1) Use Mac OS X, Linux or other Unix derivative as almost all tools for and familiarity by CBP will be with Winblows.
(2) Use PGP disk for your sensitive data.
(3) Use whole disk, on-the-fly, encryption like in Mac OS X.
(4) You can refuse to reveal any password or passphrase though you may be detained and released after a number of hours if a US citizen. Non-US citizens, well... A better strategy would be to have your machine boot up into a basic "dummy" user account by default or upon request of your "password" that is actually not your regular, real user account. This should satisfy most pathocrats working for the government at that level.

I'm sure others out there can chime in with more advice.

My laptop has never been scrutinized by CBP and I have only been sent to secondary inspection 1 time in the 11 times I've visited the States since I quietly became an expat. I will inform the group if this trend changes.
Click to expand...
Click to expand...
I'd try to not intentionally wierd out the cops with something like MacOS or Linux. That only makes them more suspicious. You want to soothe them into complacency of the familiar. OS X's volume encryption is weak - and from what I've heard, it was the equivalent of a weekend hack, not really meant to be used, more of a checklist feature.

If I had data I was worried about, I'd run a stock WinXP laptop, with all (and I mean all) private data kept on a detachable external hard drive encrypted with PGPDisk. Perhaps keep a Norton Ghost image of a clean WinXP install, and a Ghost image of your private install on the encrypted hard drive. Ghost the public image before you go thru customs, and ghost the private image back when you're clear.

The encrypted hard drive should be kept separate from the laptop, maybe with your ipod or cd player, so it doesn't stand out. Maybe the external hard drive IS your ipod. Heh.

But the real concern is that of corruption - hey that's a nice laptop, I'm starting to get real suspicious that you're a terrorist. Yeah, I think that laptop needs to be confiscated and analyzed by me and my kids.
 
I think the easiest thing to do is to place your PGP, variable-length,
encrypted ghost images on your DVDs, but renamed to a video filename
extension and then add a number of real video files with real filename
extention to fill up the rest of the DVD media. Make sure that you have
copies of the DVDs at home in case the DVDs are confisated and make
sure you have a number of DVDs that makes it harder to spot the two
or more DVDs so that your chances are good that you have at least one
with the images on it for OS restores after confisation. Finally, make
sure you also have command-line-password-required-bootable DVDs
and not one that boots automatically from the DVD player.

The OS on the laptop is simply a first-time, clean install that you created
BEFORE you added anything at all, but be sure to add whatever video/music
players so that you can play your DVDs.

Follow the maxim: KISS
 
I like the separate media idea and hiding in plain sight like DVD, iPod.

I would also advise on wiping out the free/swap space on your system prior to traveling.

I suppose extra copies of the USB or DVD media can also be sent via courier to backup your backups if DVD/iPod gets confiscated.

Happy Traveling.
 
Strike the detain and release for US citizens from my first post.

Because of the new Military Commissions Act, there is the potential that a returning US citizen can be declared an "'unlawful enemy combatant". This is scary stuff, the stakes just got higher.
 
on_strike_usaexpat said:
Strike the detain and release for US citizens from my first post.

Because of the new Military Commissions Act, there is the potential that a
returning US citizen can be declared an "'unlawful enemy combatant".
This is scary stuff, the stakes just got higher.
Click to expand...
Looks to me that fear is getting to you? Why in the world do you think that
the USA is gonna be looking specifically for YOU and that YOU have anything
of substance that they care about? Even if they do, what do you care? The
Gods already know what you know so what is the big deal, anyway?

There is NOTHING the PTB can do to force you to reveal anything if it is
truly your will to withhold. As from my studies from this site and elsewhere,
get used to the idea that these pigs (3/4D STS) will probably induce the highest
pain possible while you are alive or dead hoping to force it out of you, but that
would mean you have something of great value (such as the location of the
ark of the covenant) in order for them to waste any time on you.

Laura has proven this point many times and had come under extreme pain and
was very close to death. The real test is, will YOU be able to go through such pain
and suffering in order to keep your secrets and your wits about you? Is that your
real fear?

I would say, keep your head held high, knowing that no matter what you do, you
are in the right; a warrior with courage, seeking truth and knowledge. They, who
are of darkness will trample you, the pearls that you are into the mud, they are
truly ignorant, they will not honor freewill, nor will they uphold the truth.

As the C's say: "Knowledge Protects, Ignorance Endangers."
 
I can report that my trip back in late November (entry MIA) resulted in no laptop scrutiny.

I was ready though as I had all my most important/sensitive data PGP encrypted.
 
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