~~ recommended by newestbeginning ~~
Also below is the WP article (linked in this piece) with instructions on how to lock down your phone if traveling into the US
www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2025/03/27/cbp-cell-phones-devices-traveling-us/
My fellow Americans,
What we witnessed today was nothing short of economic racketeering—a deliberate manipulation of global markets orchestrated from the highest levels of power for the express benefit of the ultra-wealthy.
In other words, Trump has proven once again that, for him and his regime, blatant, overt criminality is a feature, not a bug.
Cheeto Von Schitzhispants created total mayhem last Friday when he triggered a market crash by announcing sweeping tariffs on nearly every country, then today abruptly paused most of them—except for a crushing 125% tariff on Chinese imports—sending markets into a record-breaking rebound. In the chaos he created, the world's richest people gained a staggering $304 billion in a single day, the biggest one-day jump ever recorded by Bloomberg's Billionaires Index.
Some members of Congress are now calling for investigations into this alarmingly transparent coordinated scheme. This wasn't ever about trade policy—it was a calculated cash grab designed to hand hundreds of billions to the ultra-wealthy while everyone else got played.
The “American dream” has become the punchline to a joke we're all too tired to laugh at anymore.
Let’s pause to sift through the wreckage of whatever the hell today was…
… The Washington Post (yeah, I know) has published a helpful piece on how to lock down your phone if you’re traveling to the U.S. because Customs and Border Protection agents are now looking through everyone’s smartphones, tablets, and laptops. (By the way, that’s a gift link to bypass the WaPo paywall.)
… Trump has revoked temporary legal status for over 900,000 migrants who lawfully entered the U.S. using the Biden-era CBP One app, stripping their work authorization and making them eligible for deportation. DHS is now pressuring them to self-deport through CBP Home, a newly rebranded app available on both Apple and Google app stores. Because nothing says “dystopian hellscape” like receiving a deportation notice via push notification.
… Trump’s regime unveiled plans to scrutinize the social media activity of foreign nationals seeking entry into the U.S., aiming to bar those it deems supportive of “violent antisemitic ideologies.”. This surveillance extends to foreign students, green card applicants, and all others pursuing immigration benefits. Civil liberties advocates are sounding the alarm, arguing that this policy dangerously conflates legitimate criticism of Israel with antisemitism, effectively weaponizing immigration controls to suppress dissent, trampling on free speech rights. This is the same pretext the regime has already used to round up and disappear multiple foreign national college students.
… House Republicans passed the No Rogue Rulings Act, a bill that aims to muzzle federal district judges, stripping them of the power to issue nationwide injunctions like those that have halted some of Trump’s most egregious executive actions. The bill now slithers its way to the Senate, where it faces an uncertain fate as Republicans likely don’t have the 60 votes needed to overcome a filibuster in the Senate. Regardless, this attempt to hamstring the courts underscores this regime’s continued pursuit of unchecked power for Grifty McGolfcart.
… In yet another blatant act of political vengeance, Trump signed an executive order to strip security clearances and initiate federal investigations into former senior officials Miles Taylor and Chris Krebs—both of whom had the audacity to criticize Dear Leader. Taylor, the ex-DHS official who penned that anonymous 2018 op-ed exposing the administration’s chaos, and Krebs, the cybersecurity chief fired for daring to contradict Trump’s election fraud fantasies, are now in the crosshairs of a president who treats the Justice Department like his personal hit squad. This is a dangerous escalation of Trump’s war on dissent.
… Trump slashed millions in funding for programs in 10 states that actually help small U.S. manufacturers. This comes on the heels of his massive tariff stunt which he claimed was all about “Main Street, not Wall Street” and about “bringing manufacturing back to America,” making clear—once again—what we’ve always known to be true: Donald Trump is full of shit. His policies are never about helping Americans; they’re about gutting anything that doesn’t serve his (or Putin’s) agenda while further enriching himself and his cronies at everyone else’s expense.
That's it for this deep dive into the flaming dumpster that is America. Join me again tomorrow, for a news cycle guaranteed to serve up more of the same fuckery that's become our new (ab)normal.
Keep your heads held high and your middle fingers higher, and try not to dwell on the fact that Trumplethinskin has convinced a vocal portion of this country to order seconds as he serves a buffet of shit sandwiches.
Side effects may include spontaneously relocating to a different country,
Chris Zappa
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
How to lock down your phone if you’re traveling to the U.S.
If you’re traveling into the United States from another country, there’s a question you need to consider well in advance.
If asked, would you unlock your devices to allow U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents to look through your smartphone, tablet or computer? Or would you decline, which risks a delay, confiscation of your phone or being denied entry into the United States?
Knowing the answer will help you determine how to prepare your electronics before any travel.
“You have to plan ahead if you’re going to cross a border,” says Sophia Cope, a senior staff attorney at the Electronic Frontier Foundation, a consumer advocacy group. “What that plan looks like really can be different for different people.”
Is CPB allowed to do that? What’s changed?
Most law enforcement agencies must show probable cause and obtain a search warrant if they want to access a device such as a smartphone.
However, CBP has long been able to conduct warrantless searches without reasonable suspicion or probable cause at its 328 ports of entry — including border crossings and airports.
While the laws on what CBP can do haven’t changed significantly in recent years, the way it uses its powers and who is most vulnerable are shifting under the Trump administration.
There’s been an increase in reports from travelers coming into the United States of requests to access devices.
Who is at risk?
The risk is highest for noncitizens traveling into the United States, like visitors or lawful permanent residents. They can be detained or denied entry into the country if they refuse a search of their devices or if they allow it and agents find something they deem suspicious.
“Some people might just not want to travel to the United States, or they may not want to leave the U.S. if they’re already here,” Cope says.
Citizens have a legal right to refuse a voluntary search of their devices at border crossings and can’t be denied entry into the United States. However, saying no can still lead to complications. Citizens could be detained or have their phones confiscated.
Consider these other factors that increase your risk, Cope says. Do you have sensitive contact information or documents on your devices that you don’t want a government agent to access? Are you arriving from a country that is under heightened scrutiny from the United States? Do you have a criminal record or are you under investigation for something?
Check with your employer if you are traveling with a work-issued device. If you work in industries such as law, defense or banking, your employer may require you to minimize outside access to its data and devices during international travel.
What happens if I let them look at my device?
If you say yes, there are a couple of searches that an agent can do. First is a basic search, which doesn’t use any special equipment and doesn’t require reasonable suspicion. An agent gains access to your device and looks at photos, texts and any other apps.
An advanced search can be conducted if there is “reasonable suspicion,” according to CBP’s policies. Unlike the basic option, agents connect to the device using their own equipment and save your data, making it easier to automatically sift through it and collect far more.
What happens to my information?
Data copied from devices during advanced searches at entry points into the U.S. gets saved for 15 years in a database searchable by thousands of CBP employees without a warrant.
If nothing is copied, agents can still write a description of what they see on your device and save it into their searchable databases.
If someone declines to unlock a device and it’s seized, that doesn’t mean the data on it is safe. In some circumstances, agents could try to use specialized software to attempt to access it, though it’s far more difficult for devices that are encrypted. (See more in the next section.)
The agency should return any seized devices unless they become evidence, though it can take weeks or months.
How do I lock my devices down
Once you’ve considered before your trip whether you would grant or refuse access to your device, there are measures you can take to protect your data.
Identify what is sensitive data: Take a look at your device and remove any sensitive data. That may mean things you want to keep as secure as possible, like contact information for sources if you are a reporter or information about protests or activists if you are politically active. It could also mean data you aren’t worried about getting you in trouble but don’t want anyone else accessing, such as revealing personal photos.
Before traveling, back up your devices so you don’t lose anything permanently. Then delete anything you’re worried about being misinterpreted or saved by the government. That can include conversations that compromise the privacy of the people on the other end. You might delete messages about politics, contact information for political dissidents, apps that save offline copies of sensitive documents like Google Docs, even your phone’s built-in Notes app.
Agents are often looking for clues that your stated reasons for visiting are not accurate. For example, someone on a visitor visa who is actually in the country for work. They may also flag anything that could be seen as illegal or a threat to the United States.
Go passcode only: Turn off any biometric unlocking options like fingerprints or facial recognition. Use a passcode, preferably longer than just four digits. There are stronger legal protections for information you know, like passcodes and passwords, under the Fifth Amendment.
Disconnect from the internet: Disconnect from any cellular or wireless internet connections before handing a device over. CBP policy is to disconnect phones and look through only data already saved on your device, not information stored remotely, like in the cloud. An officer should ask you to disable internet and cellular connections first.
Clear your caches: Even disconnected, many apps have cached information that someone looking through your phone can still see. For example, your Facebook app can show recent posts in your feed, or a browser can have a history of pages you’ve accessed. If you are putting a device into airplane mode before traveling, clear out any saved sensitive data from social media sites or other cloud-based apps.
Make sure devices are encrypted: Most updated Android and iOS smartphones will automatically encrypt data when locked. Some computers do it automatically now, as well, but if they don’t, they will include options to do it manually. Encryption helps protect your data if you decline to give agents access.
Don’t just take a wiped phone: If you are especially worried about your data, you may think about wiping your phone or computer entirely before a trip and restoring from a backup later. However, a nearly blank device can create its own problems.
“That itself can raise suspicion. You are not a normal person; you don’t have any extra apps or whatever,” Cope says. “That’s a problem because people are kind of damned if they do and damned if they don’t.”
Tatum Hunter contributed to this report.
Help Desk: Making tech work for you
Help Desk is a destination built for readers looking to better understand and take control of the technology used in everyday life.
Take control: Sign up for The Tech Friend newsletter to get straight talk and advice on how to make your tech a force for good.
Tech tips to make your life easier: What to know about what’s new in iOS 18.2 | 5 tips to make your gadget batteries last longer | How to get back control of a hacked social media account | Meta ends fact-checking | The best tech to have in a natural disaster
Tech trends: The best and weirdest tech at CES 2025 | Tech trends to watch in 2025
Data and Privacy: A guide to every privacy setting you should change now. We have gone through the settings for the most popular (and problematic) services to give you recommendations. Google | Amazon | Facebook | Venmo | Apple | Android
No comments:
Post a Comment