US Customs block Canadian man after reading through his private data - Polidicks

[QUOTE]A Vancouver man was denied entry into the United States after a US Customs and Border Patrol officer read his profiles on the gay hookup app Scruff and the website BBRT. The officer suspected the man was a sex worker because he found messages from the man saying he was “looking for loads,” and assumed it meant he was soliciting sex for cash. While the misunderstanding might sound funny, it underscores the bitter reality that non-Americans have very few rights at the border, and that even suspicion of criminal behaviour can be used to deny non-Americans entry. André, a 30-year-old Vancouver set decorator who declined to give his full name for fear of retaliation from US Customs, describes the experience as “humiliating.” André says he was planning to visit his boyfriend, who was working in New Orleans. But when he was going through Customs preclearance at Vancouver airport last October, he was selected for secondary inspection, where an officer took his phone, computer and other possessions, and demanded the passwords for his devices. “I didn’t know what to do. I was scared, so I gave them the password and then I sat there for at least an hour or two. I missed my flight,” André says. “He came back and just started grilling me. ‘Is this your email?’ and it was an email attached to a Craigslist account for sex ads. He asked me, ‘Is this your account on Scruff? Is this you on BBRT?’ I was like, ‘Yes, this is me.’” When the officer asked him what he meant by “looking for loads,” André says he tried to explain, but the officer kept grilling him. “I could tell just by his nature that he had no intentions of letting me through. They were just going to keep asking me questions looking for something,” he says. “So I asked for the interrogation to stop. I asked if I go back to Canada am I barred for life? He said no, so I accepted that offer.” A month later, André attempted to fly to New Orleans again. This time, he brought what he thought was ample proof that he was not a sex worker: letters from his employer, pay stubs, bank statements, a lease agreement and phone contracts to prove he intended to return to Canada. When he went through secondary inspection at Vancouver airport, US Customs officers didn’t even need to ask for his passwords — they were saved in their own system. But André had wiped his phone of sex apps, browser history and messages, thinking that would dispel any suggestion he was looking for sex work. Instead, the border officers took that as suspicious. “They went through my computer. They were looking through Word documents,” André says. “I had nude photos of myself on my phone, and they were questioning who this person was. It was really humiliating and embarrassing.” “They said, ‘Next time you come through, don’t have a cleared phone,’ and that was it. I wasn’t let through. He said I’m a suspected escort. You can’t really argue with them because you’re trapped,” he says. André says he lost at least $1200 on non-refundable flights and hotels on the two cancelled trips.[/QUOTE] [url]http://www.dailyxtra.com/canada/news-and-ideas/news/us-customs-block-canadian-man-reading-scruff-profile-215531[/url]

Thank God, if Easy D hadn't blocked this gay artist from entering the United States or country would've split at the moral seams! /s This is a violation of human rights. This is not my country.

Really disgusting. As I said in many dicussions, "land of the free" my ass.

This is complete bullshit. I don't wanna live here anymore.

I swear this reads as pure fucking satire, are we living in a fucking pipe dream?

Good thing this disgusting terrorist wasn't allowed in

South Park has finally become out reality.

[QUOTE=SandvichBL;51881325]This is complete bullshit. I don't wanna live here anymore.[/QUOTE] Me neither. Most of the time when I say this, people say "Then move!" It's not that simple god damn it. I can barely afford to eat most days where I am. How the fuck would I be able to afford moving out of the country? I could just abandon my life here and pack my car up but I have family and friends that I can't just abandon. I have no savings because I work part time and cannot afford to save much and finding a well paying job is a fucking crapshoot. It feels like I'd be more likely to win the lotto than get a good job. I don't know where I'm going with this post but I hate America today and I hate that I am practically forced to live here.

Absolute fucking cancer. Land of the free, my ass.

[QUOTE=MarcusSmith;51881312]"land of the free" my ass.[/QUOTE] Your free to oppress your fellow man? I'm kinda curious why he gave them the passwords.

[QUOTE=Sims_doc;51881356]Your free to oppress your fellow man?[/QUOTE] Man, maybe you got me mistaken, I hate the US situation right. And what the US officer did was disgusting.

[quote]“They went through my computer. They were looking through Word documents,” André says. “I had nude photos of myself on my phone, and they were questioning who this person was. It was really humiliating and embarrassing.”[/quote] Between adult dating apps and naked photos of yourself no less regardless of his sexuality I'd find that to be just a tinge creepy.

[QUOTE=Sims_doc;51881356]Your free to oppress your fellow man? I'm kinda curious why he gave them the passwords.[/QUOTE] I'd assume he gave them his passwords as a way prove to them he had nothing to hide. If he didn't give them his passwords, they'd probably have more reason to be suspicious.

And the CBSA does the exact same thing. This isn't unique to US Customs. Travelling between countries invites searches by the receiving country. Sometimes even the country one is departing from.

[QUOTE=Kigen;51881369]And the CBSA does the exact same thing. This isn't unique to US Customs. Travelling between countries invites searches by the receiving country. Sometimes even the country one is departing from.[/QUOTE] Doesn't justify jack shit. Looking into your [I]fucking emails[/I] in customs is some horseshit measure that's not gonna do any good. See; article And then, any terrorist or high-profile criminal worth their salt would [I]never[/I] leave evidence of their ill activities so openly lit.

US CBP, doing their part to ensure gay men in America don't face competition from the sexier men of the North. /s On a more serious note, this is exactly why on my trip next month I'm going to use a burner phone with nothing on it. I'm already brown and have a beard, I'm on thin enough ice at is. :v:

[QUOTE=Kigen;51881369]And the CBSA does the exact same thing. This isn't unique to US Customs. Travelling between countries invites searches by the receiving country. Sometimes even the country one is departing from.[/QUOTE] Regardless, it's a violation of privacy. No customs should be snooping around anybodies personal private data. People should be able to retain their right for privacy.

[QUOTE=snookypookums;51881382]US CBP, doing their part to ensure gay men in America don't face competition from the sexier men of the North. /s On a more serious note, this is exactly why on my trip next month I'm going to use a burner phone with nothing on it. I'm already brown and have a beard, I'm on thin enough ice at is. :v:[/QUOTE] considering how shitty things have been in US customs the past decade I woulnd't expect anything else but a thorough check on you just for your appearance, so travelling "light" of information would be very wise unless they heat up the BBQ for you

[QUOTE=stotd;51881346]South Park has finally become out reality.[/QUOTE] It's been a documentary for a while now.

I mean, from a security standpoint, the act of just...handing out your password to someone at their request defeats the entire point of actually having a password to protect your private data in the first place. On top of that, there's nothing more welcoming to a foreigner in a new land than...opening up his phone and laptop to see if he/she's been saying anything mean/scary and then interrogated about it. Meanwhile, over in Asia, the immigration counter has a small candy bowl and I get a cheery "Welcome to India/China/Thailand/Singapore!" and I'm on my merry way.

[QUOTE=TheRealFierce;51881289]When he went through secondary inspection at Vancouver airport, US Customs officers didn’t even need to ask for his passwords — they were saved in their own system[/QUOTE] Yeah, that's not a massive security breach waiting to happen. /s

[QUOTE=Demache;51881422]Yeah, that's not a massive security breach waiting to happen. /s[/QUOTE] "It's ok guys our systems are the best systems, the most foolproof systems, it isn't like we even publicly acknowledge breaches or anything."

[QUOTE]They said, ‘Next time you come through, don’t have a cleared phone[/QUOTE] That is /really/ disturbing. And wrong.

[QUOTE=snookypookums;51881405]I mean, from a security standpoint, the act of just...handing out your password to someone at their request defeats the entire point of actually having a password to protect your private data in the first place. On top of that, there's nothing more welcoming to a foreigner in a new land than...opening up his phone and laptop to see if he/she's been saying anything mean/scary and then interrogated about it. Meanwhile, over in Asia, the immigration counter has a small candy bowl and I get a cheery "Welcome to India/China/Thailand/Singapore!" and I'm on my merry way.[/QUOTE] They can ban non us residents from entering the country for refusing to give out their passwords. However it does sound like bullshit that they would deny him entry for wiping his phone. On another note it does mention something about craigslist sex ads being tied to his email, there could be more to this story then the article lets on.

[QUOTE=GabrielWB;51881476]That is /really/ disturbing. And wrong.[/QUOTE] Well it looks pretty fucking suspicious if you pass through customs with your phone and laptop completely sanitized. And yes I do know this because on all my international trips I carried a Panasonic CF-18 and simply because it isn't your regular consumer laptop it's ALWAYS checked.

This both disturbs and worries me greatly. I have a friend who I've known in the UK for nearly six years who's been wanting to move to the states for some time and he's finally getting the break he needs to do so. The poor guy's gone through enough hardships in his life as it is, and I'll be thoroughly ticked If I end up getting a call saying he was denied entry over something like this.

Is America great yet? because it seems to be becoming more and more rotten with every passing week. I have no words for how thoroughly sickened I am reading this shit.

What's stopping you just saying "No" They have no legal right to your information, surely?

[QUOTE=ZombieDawgs;51881511]What's stopping you just saying "No" They have no legal right to your information, surely?[/QUOTE] I'd imagine then you're denied entry.

[QUOTE=ZombieDawgs;51881511]What's stopping you just saying "No" They have no legal right to your information, surely?[/QUOTE] You can say no and just turn back to the country you came from. That's perfectly within what you are allowed to do at any point. I don't think they ultimately have to justify denying entry to any foreigner.