Border patrol to randomly search/seize iPods, laptops?

The new policy allows random warrantless search and seizures at the border.  Under ACTA, border patrol agents will be able to seize peoples’ laptops, iPods, and other electronics which they suspect contain illegally-obtained media.  If the border patrol thinks they've found such media on the devices, they are authorized to destroy them at their discretion...

Recently released information reveals that the Department of Homeland Security has been granted the power to without any suspicion of wrongdoing seize travelers’ "device(s) capable of storing information in digital or analog form," including “hard drives, flash drives, cell phones, iPods, pagers, beepers, and video and audio tapes" as well as "all papers and other written documentation."  After seizure, the materials may be taken off site.  The contents of the laptops can then be shared with other agencies and/or private entities for language translation, data decryption or other reasons.

(Via: DailyTech) 

What an awful idea.

1. In terms of "illegally-obtained media"...how would you be able to tell the difference between a person who has ripped a movie from a DVD they own to their iPod, and someone who has downloaded it off of BitTorrent? Short of the filename itself (which can be easily changed), there'd be no way to tell. Same thing with audio files.

2. People who want to hide things on their computer are going to be able to hide things on their computer. This is not going to stop criminals who know what they're doing. Modern utilities, when configured properly, can encrypt data in such a way that it is virtually irreversible. Furthermore, they can offer deniable encryption, where if a border officer orders someone to enter the decryption key, they can enter a false key that will show a phoney set of documents, while the real documents remain hidden. And plus, if anyone wants to get something across the border, they could simply send it over the internet as an encrypted file, or through TOR or a VPN, or as a steganographic message, etc. This isn't even a deterrance for people who know what they're doing.
3. This infringes on organizations and individuals who have a legitimate need to keep files hidden....trade secrets, financial data, corporate records, etc. Lets say some random border officer gains information about a company through one of these searches that would give him an advantage on the stock market. Or sells proprietary data to one of the company's competetors. This kind of search opens up some pretty awful possibilities for the infringement of legitimate data.
4. For U.S. citizens, this type of search is essentially unconstitutional. Analysis of an individual's electronic device (at the level where it would be necessary to determine whether or not it contained any "offending" information) is not by any means, a "routine" search, and therefore cannot be conducted at random. "Routine" searches of luggage, briefcases, pockets, etc. are permitted at random, but the time it takes to conduct these searches is minimal, and they do not carry the same risk of data loss/theft that a search of an electronic device has. A briefcase can be searched in a few seconds, with the individual present. A hard drive or other removable media would need to be connected to a border agent's computer, and if that is done at random to the Average Joe crossing the border, that opens the door to simply too much potential for abuse. Now, if they have reason to believe that they are dealing with a terrorist, drug dealer or a child pornographer, then fine. You have cause for a non-random search. Go ahead and catch those sick bastards. But searching people's electronics randomly as they cross the border hoping to find something is a waste of both time and resources.
5. Is the U.S. government really going to be able to have people at the border who know how to work a computer, let alone be familiar with the intricacies of data encryption? I think not.

The whole plan sounds fishy to me. How about using those border patrol agents to find bombs or curb illegal immigration, not wasting time snooping around on people's iPod's looking for pirated music. Since when did trade cartels have such a strangle-hold on government policy? Oh wait.