samusual2000

About 8 months ago I was visiting my friend in Canada, I go up a few times a year and have never had a problem going in to Canada or coming into the United States. But what happened to me was very nerve racking. Let me explain.

I waited in the line in my car as usual, I pulled up and talked to the CBP in the booth, I was asked to go inside, which I did. I sat down until they called my name. I went up to the counter and was asked who i was seeing in Canada, I said my friend and the CBP officer made me write down their name... ( Why? )
He made a comment that my friend is "A little to old for me".... I am 34 he is 58, but we are just friends and I have known him for 13 years.

I was sent into secondary inspection and was notified that all of my electronics were being confiscated and sent to forensics to look for Contraband. I didn't really understand what that mean and I did not know the law so I commplied with an "okay..?" and he asked if he could take the power cord too and I said that it was fine. I had 3 SD cards from my camera taken, a laptop and I can only imagine that my cell phone was copied too.

Arriving home I was told by my dad that someone in the neighborhood was on WIFI's and downloading illegal material, they went to the neighbors first and then to my dads house where I was staying. They checked his computer and gave it back to him and wanted to check mine. Due to Homeland security declaring that they can seize and search all electronic devices at the border, I am guessing that the detective thought he wouldn't have to get a warrant to do it, just to have CBP/Homeland security do it?

A few months later the state police dropped off my laptop and my SD cards etc off at my dads house, there was not contraband on it, obviously.
Will I have this happen now every-time I come back into my own country? I did not feel very respected at the port of entry and felt as though they were being hostile to me.

sinanju

I can't speak directly to your question, but I can tell you one thing... I would trust none of that gear. I would plug those SD cards into nothing. Just throw them away unless there is sensitive data on them. In that case, Boot-And-Nuke them, then throw them away. I would rebuild the laptop drive from scratch only after running Boot-And-Nuke on it -- don't even trust the boot sectors and don't boot it in its current state connected to your home network. In fact, scratch that. Sell the laptop. Boot-And-Nuke can get rid of any software, but hardware may have been installed in it.

samusual2000

Thank you sinanju for your reply, I had considered the option that they may have installed something on it and I have not used it except to check the history and see if they went through my history, which they apparently did not do, that or they deleted it. I am going to sell it, I am not tech savvy so I just want to get rid of it, I bought a new one while I was waiting for it to be returned anyway. I still use the SD cards though, I have been using the SD cards in my camera and new laptop, though.

yandosan

"Arriving home I was told by my dad that someone in the neighborhood was on WIFI's and downloading illegal material"

So they just conduct a blanket sweep of every damn person in the
neighborhood? What kind of "illegal material" exactly? You should be allowed
to know. The morality police even want to decide who you can see, or visit
based on demographics. It's official, folks, the terrorists have won.

samusual2000

I don't know, my father has the beginning stages of alcohol induced Alzheimers, he barley knew what was going on. I was really inconvenienced, I won't be bringing electronics through customs again.

javabytes

I'd be just as worried about this as the seizure at the border. Anybody showing up on my doorstep and requesting to check my computer will get laughed off my property.

sinanju

I would't have done that, but I'm more paranoid than most. I assume you use windows and autoplay could have installed something from those cards. The contents of the cards might also have been altered to take advantage of a side-channel vulnerability in software used to read the contents. If you're using them now, what's done is done.