If you are flying to/from the US, I imagine that they would search your computer at the airport because that is the only practical time for them to do it. I think it is less that airports are considered international borders “in accordance with international law” (so the 100 mile rule does not apply), but rather they are just convenient points to search people who are entering/exiting the US and thus crossing the recognized borders (so they can search a laptop without giving a reason).
Have a happy New Year USA!
Holy cow - so the majority of the people in the US aren’t protected by the constitution? That can’t be right, can it?
Would you like some law-theater to go along with your security-theater at the border? For your piece of mind we studiously keep up appearances of being a nation of laws, though this is a fanciful (albeit meticulous) facade. The constitution is window-dressing that is acknowledged mostly just where it doesn’t especially inconvenience the state. The NSA warrantlessly unreasonably constantly searches and surveils everyone in the nation, and law-theater declares that that’s totes legal too! Caselaw-theater backs up the judge on this one - we’ve never actually had our purported freedom from unreasonable search and seizure in the USA, so why start listening to the constitution now? It just isn’t a very strong case to take to a judge.
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It really sounds to me like they’re saying “Well we really don’t like being held accountable for our actions, so…”
All major transport hubs, such as train stations and rail freight yards, are included in border enforcement. I think I read about la migra doing something at a big interstate truck stop away from what any of us would think of as “border”, but I can’t remember the details. To get an idea of what “near an airport” can mean, here’s a map of airports in Kansas, which is about as far inside the USA as you can get.
According to their definition of ‘border’ going out of the country is not the only time to protect our data - you need to do it if you so much as take your cell phone with you in your car.
This one will get challenged, as well. As it should. Once again, we’re getting screwed over by a federal circuit court, which will review a case according to the letter of the enormous bulk of federal regulation and law, existing case law, the judge’s mood ring, or mere whimsy. Another circuit might do the same and come up with a completely different answer. As with others, the only place to get it settled is at the Supreme Court level, where Constitutionality comes first, and actually (OMG!) actually holds precedence over everything else, including existing case law. (And, Jaysus! Where do we FIND these circuit court monkeys, anyway?)
You can’t be forced to reveal the password of your encryption… But what’s to stop them from just confiscating your laptop entirely?
Also - and this is fun - in some airports around the world (say, Toronto Pearson for example), they actually have a part of the airport sectioned off as American soil (sort of?). You actually enter the United States and go through US customs at the departure airport. Convenient!
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