Can Customs ask for passwords in your computer?
IN these days of terror and hi-tech smuggling, the Customs officers at airports are believed to have all kinds of powers to search passengers and their baggage including computers. Is a passenger bound to tell the Customs officers the passwords for his computer and the various kinds of data stored in it?
The New Zealand Customs is proposing to amend the law to provide for this. In a discussion paper released last week, the Customs said,
When Customs does examine a person's electronic device, the owner is not legally obliged to provide us with a password or encryption key to access the device. We have found that it is relatively uncommon for someone to refuse to provide this, but if they do refuse it can mean we have no way of uncovering evidence of criminal offending even when we know the device does hold this evidence.
If a person refuses to provide access, it is likely that Customs will seize the device for forensic examination and not return it immediately to the owner (unless there is nothing to suggest the device contains prohibited material). However, some devices cannot be accessed and examined by our Electronic Forensics Unit without password or encryption access. If Customs cannot require access to an electronic device, it is not possible to treat the device in the same way that we treat the examination of accompanying baggage. This undermines the purpose of examining electronic devices and is a barrier to us effectively investigating and prosecuting criminal offending.
So, the Customs wants the Laws to be amended to stipulate "A person has a legal obligation to provide Customs with access to their electronic device if required by Customs (an explicit power in the Customs and Excise Act)".
Commenting on the move, The New Zealand Herald editorially commented today, "Ministers of law enforcement agencies will receive many requests for legislated powers to make their job easier. Ministers should look at all such requests and ask themselves two questions: is this an invasion of people's privacy or human rights? And if so, is it really necessary?"