A few weeks ago the Ninth Circuit released an opinion that allowed searches of laptops (and presumably other devices) at the border. The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) sent a letter on behalf of 40 civil liberties organizations to the Head of Homeland security requesting a hearing on searches of electronic devices.
As the commenters previously noted here at Dear Author, the border searches present confidentiality concerns for businesses. But it also presents a privacy concern. Congressional hearings rarely end up changing anything. After all, Big Oil had to head to Capital Hill in 2005 to face a Congressional hearing because the industry’s record profits. They were there again in April defending their record profits.
Thanks RebeccaJ.
