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andixtoday at 7:04 PM5 repliesview on HN

Anyone still crossing US borders with electronic devices that aren't fully wiped? This is company policy for some European companies for a long time. Even during the Biden administration.

Most employees just receive a wiped phone/laptop for the duration of the trip. Depending on the country its either a device that only has access to the bare minimum of Services, or for countries like Russia they issue a dumb phone that can only call and text.


Replies

iamnotheretoday at 7:38 PM

Half of the commenters here seem to believe that nobody has ever done this successfully because it must be “suspicious”. Despite it being a common practice for many organizations.

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chanakyatoday at 9:17 PM

I do that several times a year, and never wipe my phone. I looked at statistics of such phone examinations over the last few years, and I didn't see any difference between the current and last administrations, when nobody was wiping their phones.

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quickthrowmantoday at 9:32 PM

I will be wiping my before I pass through US Customs next, no matter who the president is. I have no idea what some guard might randomly take issue with, best not to risk it.

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SoftTalkertoday at 8:07 PM

Yes, the vast majority of US citizens returning from international travel cross the border with their regular personal, unwiped phones every day.

flerchintoday at 7:40 PM

It's frankly insane that y'all have to do that, and yes Americans cross the border, perhaps haplessly.

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