Although I shouldn't be surprised, I was a little (at first). The Border Patrol and Customs folks are apparently doing more than the metal detector and x-ray system to scan people who enter the U.S. The Electronic Frontier Foundation and the Asian Law Caucus recently sued over some very intrusive search techniques used by the government. Here's how the EFF website describes it (eff.org):
"ALC, a San Francisco-based civil rights organization, received more than 20 complaints from Northern California residents last year who said they were grilled about their families, religious practices, volunteer activities, political beliefs, or associations when returning to the United States from travels abroad. In addition, customs agents examined travelers' books, business cards collected from friends and colleagues, handwritten notes, personal photos, laptop computer files, and cell phone directories, and sometimes made copies of this information."
There were people who had their laptop seized, with a demand for the log-on name and password. And, when things are returned (and sometimes they are not), they have often been altered by the Government. The Government calls these searches "routine". I would beg to differ, and would probably change my flight or not travel if my other option was turning over my electronic equipment without any idea what was going to be done, or when I would get it back.
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