# US Department of Homeland Security checking email - Author: Joichi Ito - Date: 2005-03-12T02:16:38Z IPIt should be noted that as with fingerprinting, some countries MAY demand similar action from our citizens entering their country. Dave ------ Forwarded Message From: rose Date: Fri, 11 Mar 2005 08:49:32 -0800 (PST) To: dave Subject: "1984" has arrived! DHS demanding on site acccess to email accounts of selected incoming aliens Hi Dave, As an attorney, practicing in the areas of international business and immigration law, it has come to my attention through discussions with other attorneys, that DHS is pulling aside "selected" aliens at entry checkpoints and bringing them into a separate room which contains a DHS computer connected to the internet. The aliens are told to bring up their various email accounts on the screen and enter their passwords. DHS then reads the emails for information pertaining to possible unauthorized work or other matters and questions the aliens on these findings. Of course, no attorney can be present at these interrogations! People travelling to the U.S. should be aware that a possible search of them by DHS now also means a search of their email accounts! Regards, Rose Robbins, Esq.This means that I should probably be careful not to have any suspicious looking email on my computer either. This also creates a vulnerability for aliens entering the US because someone could send them a bunch of sketchy email that would get them in trouble when they are about to enter the US... UPDATE:From: Kevin Murphy Date: Fri, 11 Mar 2005 12:38:08 -0500 To: dave Subject: RE: [IP] comments "1984" has arrived! DHS demanding on site access to email accounts of selected incoming aliens I find this very difficult to believe. How many people can remember the hostname, IP address or URL used to access their email, without the benefit of bookmarks or an preconfigured mail client? How many can even remember their password? For most people, their account and client would be set up by their employer or their ISP. They boot up Outlook and it just works. I know I couldn't provide this information, particularly after a long-haul flight, nicotine withdrawal, and standing in line at passport control for an hour. And how would DHS know what email accounts you have, anyway? Kevin Murphy US Bureau Chief ComputerWire San Francisco, CA 94103 --- #### Categories Privacy, US Policy and Politics