4 ms·

"I don't remember my password."

by m_ram 13y ago

jlgreco 13y ago
That is when they detain/harass him and steal his computer anyway.
- andrewpi 13y ago
  And probably use the NSA backdoor to peek at the hard drive, right?
grey-area 13y ago
It's illegal not to provide your password in the UK, not sure what the rules are under these special powers in the US.
- notdrunkatall 13y ago
  The more I read about the laws in the UK, the more I appreciate the laws in the USA. We don't have everything right, but at least our system is rooted in the notion of the sanctity of individual rights. Or was.
- aqme28 13y ago
  IIRC the 5th amendment allows you to not divulge your password, unless they can prove that there is illegal content .
- haakon 13y ago
  What if you genuinely don't remember your password? Is it in effect memory loss that's been made illegal?
- aplusbi 13y ago
  Then change your password to something that you don't actually know. Generate a random password before your trip and print out a few copies. Take one with you and secure the remaining ones. Before you fly through the UK, change the password on your computer to the random one and destroy the printout. When you get back home use the remaining printouts to change your password back and then destroy them.
  - pavel_lishin 13y ago
    At this point, why are you even bringing your computer along, if you have no way to log into it?
    - aplusbi 13y ago
      This obviously depends on your travel plans. For the US, for example, CBP can only search your belongings on entry into the US. If you are traveling from the US -> wherever -> US then you only need to secure your laptop for your return flight.
  - TheCraiggers 13y ago
    These sorts of techniques make great comments, but are nearly useless in reality. First of all, even if you're being truthful, saying "I don't know my password" will likely not be believed. Explaining the process you went through to safeguard your password will merely elicit suspicion by a border agent. Why would you go through such pains if you had nothing to hide? And once they are suspicious of you, you will almost surely be detained and have your equipment seized. Yes, the government might not be able to decrypt it for years, but they still have your laptop, and they are still in possession of your data, encrypted as it may be. So, I ask you, who won this little battle? It sure wasn't you. IMHO, the only valid approach here is to host everything on an external server, and VPN / SSH into it to do your work. Don't store the connection info locally, and don't store any passwords / keys locally. Make sure no confidential files ever touch your hard drive, even in a cache. Most agents have no idea how that process works, and unless you have a shortcut on your desktop / home directory labeled "connect to home fileserver" they probably won't even think to ask you for any further info. EDIT: Stupid spelling error. Thanks, recursive.
    - thangalin 13y ago
      > Why would you go through such pains if you had nothing to hide? Why would you not want a camera in your bathroom, if you have nothing to hide?
      - 13y ago
w1ntermute 13y ago
http://xkcd.com/538/ http://xkcd.com/538/

"I don't remember my password."

by m_ram 13y ago

"I don't remember my password."

jlgreco 13y ago

That is when they detain/harass him and steal his computer anyway.

andrewpi 13y ago
And probably use the NSA backdoor to peek at the hard drive, right?

grey-area 13y ago

It's illegal not to provide your password in the UK, not sure what the rules are under these special powers in the US.

notdrunkatall 13y ago
The more I read about the laws in the UK, the more I appreciate the laws in the USA. We don't have everything right, but at least our system is rooted in the notion of the sanctity of individual rights. Or was.
aqme28 13y ago
IIRC the 5th amendment allows you to not divulge your password, unless they can prove that there is illegal content .
haakon 13y ago
What if you genuinely don't remember your password? Is it in effect memory loss that's been made illegal?
aplusbi 13y ago
Then change your password to something that you don't actually know. Generate a random password before your trip and print out a few copies. Take one with you and secure the remaining ones. Before you fly through the UK, change the password on your computer to the random one and destroy the printout. When you get back home use the remaining printouts to change your password back and then destroy them.
- pavel_lishin 13y ago
  At this point, why are you even bringing your computer along, if you have no way to log into it?
  - aplusbi 13y ago
    This obviously depends on your travel plans. For the US, for example, CBP can only search your belongings on entry into the US. If you are traveling from the US -> wherever -> US then you only need to secure your laptop for your return flight.
- TheCraiggers 13y ago
  These sorts of techniques make great comments, but are nearly useless in reality. First of all, even if you're being truthful, saying "I don't know my password" will likely not be believed. Explaining the process you went through to safeguard your password will merely elicit suspicion by a border agent. Why would you go through such pains if you had nothing to hide? And once they are suspicious of you, you will almost surely be detained and have your equipment seized. Yes, the government might not be able to decrypt it for years, but they still have your laptop, and they are still in possession of your data, encrypted as it may be. So, I ask you, who won this little battle? It sure wasn't you. IMHO, the only valid approach here is to host everything on an external server, and VPN / SSH into it to do your work. Don't store the connection info locally, and don't store any passwords / keys locally. Make sure no confidential files ever touch your hard drive, even in a cache. Most agents have no idea how that process works, and unless you have a shortcut on your desktop / home directory labeled "connect to home fileserver" they probably won't even think to ask you for any further info. EDIT: Stupid spelling error. Thanks, recursive.
  - thangalin 13y ago
    > Why would you go through such pains if you had nothing to hide? Why would you not want a camera in your bathroom, if you have nothing to hide?
    - 13y ago

w1ntermute 13y ago

http://xkcd.com/538/ http://xkcd.com/538/