As if the Americans, thanks to George Bush, haven't already endured sufficient incursions into their personal liberties and privacy - "thing" being done post 9/11 allegedly on the grounds of security and combating terrorism - now it seems that even laptops of Americans arriving back into the country [and probably more than a goodly number of foreigners entering or passing through the US] are being subjected to close scrutiny.
The IHT reports:
"The U.S. Department of Homeland Security is routinely searching laptops at airports when Americans re-enter the United States from abroad. The government then pores over or copies the laptop's contents - including financial records, medical data and e-mail messages. These out-of-control searches trample the privacy rights of Americans, and Congress should rein them in.
There have been widespread reports of the government searching - and often seizing - laptops, BlackBerrys, iPhones and other portable electronic devices at airports. It is not clear how often these searches occur, and the government will not say. The Association of Corporate Travel Executives says that of 100 people who responded to a survey it conducted this year, seven said they had had a laptop or other electronic device seized.
This goes well beyond examining a piece of luggage. Because of the enormous amount of private information people keep on their laptops, the searches are more akin to rifling through someone's home and reading every letter, financial record and personal journal."
Needless to say it's totally beyond the pale what the Americans are doing, but then again, the last years have seen a marked erosion of civil liberties in many countries around the globe.
The IHT reports:
"The U.S. Department of Homeland Security is routinely searching laptops at airports when Americans re-enter the United States from abroad. The government then pores over or copies the laptop's contents - including financial records, medical data and e-mail messages. These out-of-control searches trample the privacy rights of Americans, and Congress should rein them in.
There have been widespread reports of the government searching - and often seizing - laptops, BlackBerrys, iPhones and other portable electronic devices at airports. It is not clear how often these searches occur, and the government will not say. The Association of Corporate Travel Executives says that of 100 people who responded to a survey it conducted this year, seven said they had had a laptop or other electronic device seized.
This goes well beyond examining a piece of luggage. Because of the enormous amount of private information people keep on their laptops, the searches are more akin to rifling through someone's home and reading every letter, financial record and personal journal."
Needless to say it's totally beyond the pale what the Americans are doing, but then again, the last years have seen a marked erosion of civil liberties in many countries around the globe.
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