6 ms·

Why the author worry so much about China customs? I never had a problem go through China customs with regards to my laptops. And never seen nor read that someon

Why the author worry so much about China customs? I never had a problem go through China customs with regards to my laptops. And never seen nor read that someone having trouble about it.

toomanybeersies 9y ago
Most people going through the USA have no issue with US Customs, but there are people that do.
- brian_herman 9y ago
  We should create a service where people can trade laptops when they go to conferences.
  - a3_nm 9y ago
    No, we should stop organizing conferences in countries where it is not legal to bring encrypted devices for personal use (like China, according to the beginning of the article), or countries where there have been known cases of pressuring travelers to decrypt their devices or of confiscating the devices (like the US). How is it reasonable or courteous to require your conference attendees to read a long guide, buy a throwaway laptop, set it up, etc., or run the risk of being requested to decrypt sensitive information at the border or have their devices seized? Just because the US and China get away with this does not mean that all countries do. Just pick any state in this list http://www.wassenaar.org/participating-states/ http://www.wassenaar.org/participating-states/ that doesn't have a history of requesting decryption or taking traveler's property without good cause.
    - baby 9y ago
      This is already going on in the crypto world, see https://www.iacr.org/misc/us-immigration-ban.html https://www.iacr.org/misc/us-immigration-ban.html
    - e12e 9y ago
      We've been there, and it looks like we might be going back... https://wiki.debian.org/non-US https://wiki.debian.org/non-US (Also: OpenBSD etc)
- UnoriginalGuy 9y ago
  Most non-Americans have issues with US immigration because they're extremely rude for absolutely no reason. US customs is fine. TSA is a mixed bag. But US immigration are unfathomably rude and disrespectful for no reason at all; they treat you like scum. I've been through US immigration & customs a lot, been sent to secondary three times, ironically the people you deal with in secondary are more polite/reasonable than the people in the little glass booths, but still very "respect my authority." Ironically going into the US feels more like entering a police state than going into Russia. The Russians were just super disinterested and to-the-point. The US is fine once you're in, but getting in as a non-American is a bad first impression (the UK has this issue too). I'd hate to think how much worse they would treat me if I was non-white and from a country with traditionally bad or mixed ties to the US. From other people's anecdotes that I've read or spoken to: Bad. Just by what their official union supports (and who) you can get a sense of their views on other races. Last year the US just started a new policy of asking foreigners for our social media credentials. It is starting out as option, but like all of these things it is just a matter of "when" not "if" it will be made mandatory.
  - camus2 9y ago
    > Most non-Americans have issues with US immigration because they're extremely rude for absolutely no reason. Never had a single problem with US immigration or customs. Had plenty of issues with Canadian customs on the other hand. Especially when crossing the border by bus. From Canada to US, never an issue, from US to Canada, treated like shit every time.
    - tluyben2 9y ago
      I had the reverse happen a lot: car from Canada to US. Hours waiting, very angry, rude officer barking at you. We like vacation in the US so it would not stop us but ugh.
  - radicalbyte 9y ago
    My twitter account is a throwaway used for spam in f2p games; I love the thought that the only person who will ever read it will be some drone from US immigration.
- leemailll 9y ago
  Well if you think US customs is the model of customs around the world, may be you should try behave nicely to those people in a cubicle?
- TheSpiceIsLife 9y ago
  It doesn't matter that most people going through the USA have no issue with US Customs. What matters is that nerve-wracking bullshit like this[1] happens to people (little old ladies!) from allied bloody countries. Mem Fox is a celebrated Australian author of childrens books. She later received an apology, but only because she's famous. Tough luck to the average foreigner who gets abused by your border agents. This is why the US is hell bent on spewing negative propaganda about China and Russia, because it needs to hide the fact that it's a huge embarrassment to itself. 1. http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-02-25/mem-fox-detained-at-los-angeles-airport-by-us-officials/8303366 http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-02-25/mem-fox-detained-at-lo...
  - brabel 9y ago
    Australia is even worse than the US when it comes to disgraceful treatment of foreigners by Customs. I was humiliated and interrogated in a similar manner described by Mem Fox in her US trip several times while entering Australia. Several friends from other countries report the same or worse. I've been to the US and China, and without doubt Australia was the worst. China, as others are saying, is actually the easiest one to get in, almost no questions, no intrusion, no laptop/phone raids. After I became an Australian citizen, I never had problems entering Australia again, interestingly (as everywhere else, they have different Customs areas for citizens).
    - TheSpiceIsLife 9y ago
      >Australia is even worse than the US when it comes to disgraceful treatment of foreigners by Customs. That is a bold claim. As an Australian it would be enlightening if you could provide links to support your assertion.
hdra 9y ago
Thats the thing.. A lot of westerners seems to think Chinese state apparatus are super ideological communists bent on catching anything that has a slight smell of democracy. If I were to sum up my personal experience with Chinese gov. officials, I think "apathetic", or even "lazy" would be a much more apt description.
- jldugger 9y ago
  The author's post is less about smuggling democracy into china and more about avoiding newspaper headlines like 'kernel.org pwned by national actor'.
  - hdra 9y ago
    I understand. The measures described in the article about hardening the laptop as a precaution are good, and I would encourage anyone who have concerns about the security of their device to take similar precaution, regardless of whether or not you have plans to travel. My response above is more about the paranoia some people tend to have when visiting China because of the reputation of its government, when from my personal experience, the people and the government workers of China are some of the most non-ideological, politically apathetic people I have interacted with.

Why the author worry so much about China customs? I never had a problem go through China customs with regards to my laptops. And never seen nor read that someone having trouble about it.

toomanybeersies 9y ago

Most people going through the USA have no issue with US Customs, but there are people that do.

brian_herman 9y ago
We should create a service where people can trade laptops when they go to conferences.
- a3_nm 9y ago
  No, we should stop organizing conferences in countries where it is not legal to bring encrypted devices for personal use (like China, according to the beginning of the article), or countries where there have been known cases of pressuring travelers to decrypt their devices or of confiscating the devices (like the US). How is it reasonable or courteous to require your conference attendees to read a long guide, buy a throwaway laptop, set it up, etc., or run the risk of being requested to decrypt sensitive information at the border or have their devices seized? Just because the US and China get away with this does not mean that all countries do. Just pick any state in this list http://www.wassenaar.org/participating-states/ http://www.wassenaar.org/participating-states/ that doesn't have a history of requesting decryption or taking traveler's property without good cause.
  - baby 9y ago
    This is already going on in the crypto world, see https://www.iacr.org/misc/us-immigration-ban.html https://www.iacr.org/misc/us-immigration-ban.html
  - e12e 9y ago
    We've been there, and it looks like we might be going back... https://wiki.debian.org/non-US https://wiki.debian.org/non-US (Also: OpenBSD etc)
UnoriginalGuy 9y ago
Most non-Americans have issues with US immigration because they're extremely rude for absolutely no reason. US customs is fine. TSA is a mixed bag. But US immigration are unfathomably rude and disrespectful for no reason at all; they treat you like scum. I've been through US immigration & customs a lot, been sent to secondary three times, ironically the people you deal with in secondary are more polite/reasonable than the people in the little glass booths, but still very "respect my authority." Ironically going into the US feels more like entering a police state than going into Russia. The Russians were just super disinterested and to-the-point. The US is fine once you're in, but getting in as a non-American is a bad first impression (the UK has this issue too). I'd hate to think how much worse they would treat me if I was non-white and from a country with traditionally bad or mixed ties to the US. From other people's anecdotes that I've read or spoken to: Bad. Just by what their official union supports (and who) you can get a sense of their views on other races. Last year the US just started a new policy of asking foreigners for our social media credentials. It is starting out as option, but like all of these things it is just a matter of "when" not "if" it will be made mandatory.
- camus2 9y ago
  > Most non-Americans have issues with US immigration because they're extremely rude for absolutely no reason. Never had a single problem with US immigration or customs. Had plenty of issues with Canadian customs on the other hand. Especially when crossing the border by bus. From Canada to US, never an issue, from US to Canada, treated like shit every time.
  - tluyben2 9y ago
    I had the reverse happen a lot: car from Canada to US. Hours waiting, very angry, rude officer barking at you. We like vacation in the US so it would not stop us but ugh.
- radicalbyte 9y ago
  My twitter account is a throwaway used for spam in f2p games; I love the thought that the only person who will ever read it will be some drone from US immigration.
leemailll 9y ago
Well if you think US customs is the model of customs around the world, may be you should try behave nicely to those people in a cubicle?
TheSpiceIsLife 9y ago
It doesn't matter that most people going through the USA have no issue with US Customs. What matters is that nerve-wracking bullshit like this[1] happens to people (little old ladies!) from allied bloody countries. Mem Fox is a celebrated Australian author of childrens books. She later received an apology, but only because she's famous. Tough luck to the average foreigner who gets abused by your border agents. This is why the US is hell bent on spewing negative propaganda about China and Russia, because it needs to hide the fact that it's a huge embarrassment to itself. 1. http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-02-25/mem-fox-detained-at-los-angeles-airport-by-us-officials/8303366 http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-02-25/mem-fox-detained-at-lo...
- brabel 9y ago
  Australia is even worse than the US when it comes to disgraceful treatment of foreigners by Customs. I was humiliated and interrogated in a similar manner described by Mem Fox in her US trip several times while entering Australia. Several friends from other countries report the same or worse. I've been to the US and China, and without doubt Australia was the worst. China, as others are saying, is actually the easiest one to get in, almost no questions, no intrusion, no laptop/phone raids. After I became an Australian citizen, I never had problems entering Australia again, interestingly (as everywhere else, they have different Customs areas for citizens).
  - TheSpiceIsLife 9y ago
    >Australia is even worse than the US when it comes to disgraceful treatment of foreigners by Customs. That is a bold claim. As an Australian it would be enlightening if you could provide links to support your assertion.

hdra 9y ago

Thats the thing.. A lot of westerners seems to think Chinese state apparatus are super ideological communists bent on catching anything that has a slight smell of democracy. If I were to sum up my personal experience with Chinese gov. officials, I think "apathetic", or even "lazy" would be a much more apt description.

jldugger 9y ago
The author's post is less about smuggling democracy into china and more about avoiding newspaper headlines like 'kernel.org pwned by national actor'.
- hdra 9y ago
  I understand. The measures described in the article about hardening the laptop as a precaution are good, and I would encourage anyone who have concerns about the security of their device to take similar precaution, regardless of whether or not you have plans to travel. My response above is more about the paranoia some people tend to have when visiting China because of the reputation of its government, when from my personal experience, the people and the government workers of China are some of the most non-ideological, politically apathetic people I have interacted with.