ARCHIVED CONTENT
You are viewing ARCHIVED CONTENT released online between 1 April 2010 and 24 August 2018 or content that has been selectively archived and is no longer active. Content in this archive is NOT UPDATED, and links may not function.Article #1
Border Patrol Says It’s Barred From Searching Cloud Data on Phones
Extract from article by E.D. Cauchi
U.S. border officers aren’t allowed to look at any data stored only in the “cloud” — including social media data — when they search U.S. travelers’ phones, Customs and Border Protection acknowledged in a letter obtained Wednesday by NBC News.
The letter (PDF), sent in response to inquiries by Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., and verified by Wyden’s office, not only states that CBP doesn’t search data stored only with remote cloud services, but also — apparently for the first time — declares that it doesn’t have that authority in the first place.
Read the complete article at Border Patrol Says It’s Barred From Searching CloudData on Phones
Article #2
U.S. Customs Says It Cannot Search Cloud Data at the Border
Extract from article by Sharon Nelson
I know that this victory for privacy could be short-lived, but huzzah for the letter written by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) acting commissioner Kevin McAleenan – which can be found in this July 13th story from The Verge. Basically, the letter (written in response to a set of questions by Sen. Ron Wyden) says that the CBP can’t search travelers’ cloud data at the border.
However, McAleenan draws a sharp distinction between data stored locally on the device and cloud data stored on remote servers. Customs has a fundamental mandate to search cargo as it enters the country, a mandate that McAleenan says extends to local disk drives. So your phones and computing devices are fair game.
Read the complete article at U.S. Customs Says It Cannot Search Cloud Data at the Border
Reference: Customer and Border Protection (CBP Letter)
Letter from CBP Acting Commissioner Kevin McAleenan
CPB Letter
Additional Reading:
- From Data to Dachau: Putting a Face on Data Privacy
- Encryption Basics: How It Works & Why You Need It