For individuals and businesses, going through an airport may mean the indefinite loss of cell phones, laptops, music players and/or portable hard drives.  Complaints have been circulating for over a year that airport security workers were confiscating electronic equipment that never got back to the owners.  A newly released Department of Homeland Security (DHS) document says that’s proper procedure.

According to PC World, DHS issued a document on July 15, 2008, officially sanctioning a policy that has been in practice for some time now.  The document allows border agents to confiscate electronic equipment for analysis of its content.  Additionally, border agents can share that information with other governmental agencies.  Supposedly this policy is important for “detecting information concerning terrorism, narcotics smuggling… contraband including child pornography, and… other import or export control laws.”

In other words, any information regardless of its legality is fair game for border agents to snoop through without the need for probable cause or a warrant.  Have any cute pictures of your children in the bathtub? (Haven’t we all had to endure such “cute” pictures from our childhood being shown to dates?)  Well depending on the border agent, you could now be guilty of child pornography and never see your pictures or laptop again.  If you have a camera phone or blackberry, that can be lost as well.

The Fourth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution reads:

Amendment 4 – Search and Seizure. Ratified 12/15/1791.

The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.

The new DHS document stands this constitutional amendment on its head.  No longer is there a need to show probable cause or even obtain a warrant.  There is no need to show any suspicion of illegal activity.  All you need is a border guard who decides he likes the look of your electronic gear or doesn’t like you.

For companies who have employees who regularly travel with laptops containing confidential company information, it is a crap shoot as to whether it is confiscated or not.  Not only can the information within the electronic equipment be viewed at will, but the border guards and DHS can hold onto your equipment indefinitely without being accountable to anyone.

The only way to ensure that you don’t have electronic equipment taken, is to not travel with it.  For business people who rely on their laptops for information, meeting presentations, and the ability to update documents quickly, having equipment confiscated, is a costly disaster.

Cell phones, music players, and portable hard drives are also subject to random seizure for later perusing.  Private lives and business secrets are no longer safe from prying government intrusion if you travel.  The pervasive excuse that exposing our private lives, documents, finances, pictures, and music to governmental scrutiny is for our own safety is getting old.

U. S. Senator Russ Feingold said that these policies are “truly alarming”.  What an understatement.  Our Constitution is being violated by DHS but no one seems to be able to do anything to stop it.

We now have unreasonable and warrantless searches and seizures.  Do you feel safer?  I don’t.

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Entry was posted on Saturday, August 2nd, 2008 at 1:49 pm under Cell phones, Legal, Notebook, Security.

Read more entries by Susan Wilson.
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