ACTE Warns Travelers To Clear Proprietary Info When Crossing Borders

Anyone with plans to fly overseas -- and who's read Orwell's "1984" -- will want to pay close attention to this next story. The Association of Corporate Travel Executives (ACTE) tells ANN the group has issued an ominous warning to its members worldwide, and to all business travelers: limit proprietary information on laptop computers when crossing US borders, and to eliminate any personal data -- including photographs, finances and email that you do not want examined by Border Protection authorities.

The warning follows a decision by a federal appeals court earlier this week, giving customs officials open authority to examine, copy, and seize travellers' laptops, without reasonable suspicion.

"ACTE filed an Amicus brief contending that a traveller's laptop was essentially intellectual property and not the same as luggage nor freight," Susan Gurley, ACTE Global Executive Director, said. "The court has disagreed and this decision will have significant impact on business travellers who have no idea their data is subject to search and seizure."

The association also argued there were no published guidelines as to what might trigger a secondary inspection, or the seizure of data or possibly the entire computer. According to Gurley, the expectation of privacy at the border is considerably less than one can expect in their home or office.

"In a time of heightened international security, it will take a brave Congress to rule that parties may not be subject to suspicionless searches," said Gurley. "The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals missed a golden opportunity to preserve the rights of Americans."

Gurley contends this issue will surface again when a more compelling case winds its way to the Supreme Court, or additional parties seek a legislative remedy to the problem.

A 2008 ACTE survey indicated that 81 percent of responding travel managers were unaware that laptops and other electronic devices that were seized could be held indefinitely. Sixty-five percent of respondents stated that their companies have now instituted a policy restricting the amount of sensitive or proprietary data that could be carried on a laptop. That number is expected to grow in the wake of this ruling.

ACTE's advice to business travellers states persons should avoid carrying any confidential, personal information that they don't want examined by third parties on your computer – or other electronic devices; to purchase another "travel" computer, if persons use their laptop as their primary home computer.

The group stresses it is not advising travelers to hide data from US border authorities... but to take reasonable steps to minimize the impact of its loss, or the inability to access it, in the event it is seized.

FMI: Read The Court's Judgement (.pdf), www.acte.org