Don’t look at my laptop

The Department of Homeland Security of America has the authority to search people’s laptops consistently at the airport when Americans try to re-enter the country from aboard. The contents of the laptops are subject to be reviewed and even collected by the government officials, and the laptops can even be seized by the government officials. In addition to the laptops, cell phones, blackberrys, iphones, and any type of portable electronic devices can be the targets of this borderless search.

Although it is an evident invastion of passengers’ privacy, the government security experts say it is a necessary process to ensure the absolute national security from any threats. However, searching through one’s laptop is a different story from examining one’s luggage. It is not a hyperbole to say that a laptop can tell everything about its owner. From one’s political view to economic status, a laptop contains countless personal information which is priceless.

The government’s full ability to have the unrestricted access to people’s invaluable personal data is the anachronicstic concept of the totalitarian government. It is ironic to see the U.S, which has endlessly fought against the immorality of the totalitarian governments through out the history, to possess such culpable totalitarian policy.

Both the Congress and the Senate now need to push the bill to ban such apparent violation of people’s privacy. Though it might seem justifiable to search the electronics of suspects with reasonable suspicion, random view of people’s personal information cannot be justified with any excuse.

Conflagration starts from a small ash of fire. Though it might be only a search or seizure of people laptops, if we keep the government’s current invasive attitude towards people’s privacy, next time, it can be our house that will be searched by the Big Brother’s secret police.