14 ms·
Woman Banned from US After Border Agent Finds Proof of Drug Use on Phone
- throw2016 9y agoThis is a intrusive and brazen breach of the right to privacy as is any inspection of personal devices and papers wherever it occurs. It's time to stop the apologism and accept we are at the bottom of the slippery slope. It's also time to stop the pointless grandstanding about China, Russia etc to feel smug and superior because there is zero moral authority to pull that off. The bigger problem is inspite of the outrage by many nothing happens. Is democracy working?
- jstanley 9y agoSo she was banned from entering the US not because she was carrying any drugs, and not because she intended to sell any drugs or get hold of any drugs, and not because she was currently using any drugs. She was banned from entering the US because she had previously taken drugs... EDIT: Also, the video on how to protect yourself when crossing the US border is "not available in my region"? What the hell? Do people in my region not have to protect ourselves when crossing the US border?
- pjc50 9y agoShe was banned from the US because border control are arbitrary, intrusive, judgemental, prejudiced and like the fact that they have power over people who have no rights in that context.
- thinkfurther 9y agoI decided to never even attempt to enter the US somewhere after 2001. Not until a bunch of things change (well, they did change; for the worse). What's the use of flying across the big pond if you can get turned away that nilly willy?
- artpop 9y agoSo they’re fascists basically.
- H4CK3RM4N 9y agoThat is a fair description of US border controls post 9-11, yes.
- rhizome31 9y agoUS border control is indeed an unpleasant experience. Even Chinese border control is nicer.
- imron 9y agoChinese border control has been a pleasant experience for at least the last 20 years (as long as I've been visiting China) and probably longer.
- rdl 9y agoAs a US citizen, US border control is OK, but for non-citizens, it seems bad -- the primary problem is that entry can be denied at essentially the whim of the border guard, without regard to the visa. Also, in a lot of countries, being a border person is one of the best jobs available -- status, contact with foreigners, and a conscious decision by the government to put a good face forward by picking good people. I've visited about 100 countries or autonomous regions, and I've never had a bad border experience in any country. The worst thing has just been getting visa in advance vs. visa on arrival, and in the case of Belarus, previously-restrictive policies which were loosened and a lot of people didn't know about it (transit via Minsk airport now doesn't require a visa) The only places with on-paper bad border controls for US people seem to be otherwise-decent countries which are trying to apply reciprocal pain to US passport holders -- Brazil being the best example.
- kushti 9y agoWhy such an accent on the gender? I see no any relevance of the gender in regards with article contents.
- jstanley 9y agoFWIW, I read it and didn't think much emphasis was placed on the gender.
- DanBC 9y agoThere isn't any accent on gender. She is a woman, it's perfectly normal to mention that.
- chc 9y agoWould you read an emphasis on gender if it had said "Man Banned from US" rather than "Woman"? I think this might simply be a case of the mind erroneously assuming male is the default gender.
- Simon_says 9y agoHalf the headlines start with "Man [verb] ..." and you never noticed. Maybe look within for the sexism?
- tomatsu 9y agohttps://www.reddit.com/r/FloridaMan/ https://www.reddit.com/r/FloridaMan/
- TheSpiceIsLife 9y agoIt's public knowledge I was charged with two counts of Traffic controlled drug and one count of Posses Prescription drug. All charges later dropped. I still joke about it on a daily basis with friends in all the usual digital chat apps. There is absolutely no freaking way I would ever go to the US. Full stop. Period. End of story. Edit: fixed an the words
- pjc50 9y agoMeanwhile in another thread people are arguing about "free speech" in the context of Nazis. I wonder if some of the people so keen to defend the worst kinds of speech could be redirected to argue that people might have a right to private free speech with their doctor and also enter the US?
- andriesm 9y agoI fail to see why there should necessarily be this tention between free speech and privacy?
- beobab 9y agoMy fellow humans: Free speech is dying in America. You are free to speak as long as it matches the illusory "public opinion", doesn't offend the "wrong people", and doesn't make law enforcement or the internet think that you're a "bad sort of person". Privacy is the safest way for individuals to preserve your "freedom". Keep your head down. Don't rock the boat. If you post an unpopular opinion, whether it's right or wrong is largely irrelevant. You will attract ire from those with an opposing opinion.
- pjc50 9y agoIf I report what you said to someone else, is that my free speech or your privacy? Privacy isn't just about how wide the 4th amendment is and whether it applies to cellphones at borders, it's a broader construction which in some cases requires suppressing information.
- jlebrech 9y agoproof of law breaking, yes but the snooping is worrying
- tokenizerrr 9y agoShe wasn't in the US at the time. Which US laws were broken?
- jlebrech 9y agodo they have to be US laws, if laws are broken in the country of origin it means she's a criminal.
- tokenizerrr 9y agoUsing drugs is not illegal. Possession is, but if you are given something by a friend and take it (as described in the article) you don't take possession. There was no proof of any laws being broken.
- soneil 9y agoIt's not just snooping .. that's communication between her and her doctor. Privacy advocates (and I consider myself one) can often come off as going a bit over-the-top - but communication between my doctor & I, and my lawyer & I, are pretty universally recognized as privileged. That she was banned because of previous exposure to contraband, doesn't really irk me so much. Canada treats American DUIs similarly, and borders are very much tit-for-tat. But searching bona fides medical correspondence to find this, seems like a genuine problem.
- matt4077 9y agoDrug use is actually not illegal. Only possession is. The article says that she consumed something that she believed to be cocaine, offered to her by a friend. When taking drugs offered to you by someone else, you never take possession.
- iDemonix 9y agoI don't plan on ever visiting the US, especially with its current administration, but if I were to visit then I'd just take a £20 burner phone and no other tech. Anything I need I can put in to any number of cloud services and get it when I'm through the pointless interrogation.
- srrge 9y agoI thought about it but what if they consider it suspect that you have a burner or a freshly wiped phone?
- rkcf 9y agoA job I interviewed for recently found it suspicious that I didn't have a facebook or other social media accounts. As if I was lying and had something to hide. I can only imagine what law enforcement would think about that.
- srrge 9y agoExactly
- marssaxman 9y agoI'd be happy to not take a job with a company like that.
- aestetix 9y agoThe exchange they found on her phone that established her prior drug use was a conversation between her and her doctor. Is border patrol allowed to violate patient/doctor confidentiality? What about attorney/client privilege?
- executesorder66 9y agoThey shouldn't have been looking on her phone anyway. What the fuck kind of fascist nation has the US become?
- koolba 9y agoPutting aside whether you think drug use should be a disqualifying factor for entering the country, assuming it is, why is it wrong to find evidence of it? Are you implying that an alien attempting to cross the border has all the same constitutional rights as a citizen?
- sametmax 9y agoWhat's the limit? A phone is full of private life. You should only have access to it if you have a clear suspicious of crime and that a judge allowed it. It's the closest thing to a cavity search without touching the body.
- koolba 9y agoMy understanding of current law is that border agents have the right to demand a cavity search. So searching your phone would be within bounds as well. Again, this is for aliens and not citizens. I see no reason for them to expect additional constitutional rights external to the US. The alternative for aliens is not to come. They can vote with their feet.
- inopinatus 9y agoCBP claims the authority to search everybody. https://www.cbp.gov/sites/default/files/documents/inspection-electronic-devices-tearsheet.pdf https://www.cbp.gov/sites/default/files/documents/inspection... It's also unclear to me why you're so carefully distinguishing between "aliens" and "citizens" in this matter, since most constitutional rights are irrespective of citizenship.
- belorn 9y ago"A British Columbia woman was issued a lifetime ban at the US border after officials found an email with her doctor" A very clear example why it is important to have encryption in the context of email. A private conversation between a patient and their doctor should be sacrosanct, and if government can't keep their hands away then technology need to step in and try to do its best to protect people.
- simonh 9y agoThey read the email on her phone. Encryption of the message between the phone and her doctor would have been useless.
- belorn 9y agoEncryption can also work on data in rest. There is no reason why very sensitive information is not stored in more safe way on the phone.
- calvano915 9y agoHaving your email app configured within the "secure folder" on a Samsung Galaxy, protected by Knox encryption and requiring biometrics or a password, for example.
- simonh 9y agoBut to even get to anything on the phone they must have got the owner to unlock it anyway. All this is pointless if the user can be compelled or persuaded to grant access. Which in this case is what happened. And if you don't grant access, they just don't let you into the country anyway. Is still don't understand how you think these measures would help.
- justinjlynn 9y agoYet another reminder to never cross borders while carrying anything other than disposable electronic communications and/or storage devices containing zero personal information. If anything leaves your sight, consider it copied and compromised - burn it.
- rkcf 9y agoTourism is one of the largest industries in the US. Approximately 77 million foreigners traveled here in 2016 [1]. Hopefully, in time, we can get some statistics about lost revenue due to these policies and persuade congress against them. Lost profits seem to be something they understand and take action on. [1] https://www.statista.com/statistics/214686/number-of-international-visitors-to-the-us/ https://www.statista.com/statistics/214686/number-of-interna...
- mnm1 9y agoThanks border guards for keeping this terrorist out. /s Seriously, she should not have admitted to drug use. Do not admit to anything at any border at any time. Always password protect the phone or even log out of your accounts in case they get in anyway. I've seen border agents pull a family into questioning because the mother hadn't signed her passport. Don't do that shit. The border is the worst place on earth and you can't fuck around there (any border to any country). Have fun after you cross over. Have common sense at the border. Lie if necessary but make sure it's a proper lie for the situation.