[mdlug] Password of DEATH

[Aaron Kulkis]

Garry Stahl wrote:
> On 06/05/2012 11:56 AM, Adam Tauno Williams wrote:
>> On Tue, 2012-06-05 at 01:21 -0400, Garry Stahl wrote:
>>> OK, the gob'ment has sezied yoir laptop and is holding you hostage for
>>> the password.  Now you don't have anthung on there really.  (I don't)
>>> Nothing critical or irreplacalbe, but dammit, it's none of their business.
>>> Suggestion, a second password that if entered goes nuclear on the hard
>>> drive deleting the thing wholesale without further action.  Better yet
>>> it boots to a croot jail screen while deleting eveything in the Home
>>> partition (You do have a separate home partition, right)
>>> Is this doable with ah average Linux distro?
>> Yes, trivially.
>>
>> And it would probably be prosecuted as obstruction of justice;  the
>> concept of spoilation almost certainly applies.
>>
>> In short - THIS WOULD BE A VERY *VERY* **STUPID** THING TO DO.
>>
>> And your wrong: if the computer was seized by a court order everything
>> on it is entirely "their business".  That's what the lay says and what a
>> court order means.  All information determined not to be related to the
>> investigation will return to a protected status.
> 
> I was not thinking court order, but airport security.  Or rather 
> pretense at security.  Fishing expeditions.  Warrentless sezuire because 
> they can.
> 
> 

considerng that it is alread a warrantless search (which the supreme
court has rule legal under the rubric of "administrative regulation"),
pissing off TSA goons is not something you want to do.

Additionally, doing this at a port of entry would be even worse --
you could be held for quite a long time with NO charges pending,
while they try to figure out what you erased.  At a U.S. Port of Entry,
you have no right of free speech.  You do not have the right to remain
silent.  You furthermore do not have a right to an attorney.
About the only right you do have at a Port of Entry is the right
to life -- they can't perform a summary execution just because
your name is on a list -- provided you are cooperating.

When I was activated to augment INS and Customs at the Ambassador
bridge in 2002, I witnessed several instances where every agent
on the site flooded a lane with weapons drawn due to information
procured during the course of the agent's interview of the driver
and/or passengers.