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There are a lot more threat models than the ones you list.

1. A journalist who has a legal right to protect their sources from discovery

2. A check on your encrypted electronic device at the border

3. A snooping housemate or someone else logs into your machine

That was in <30 seconds of thought on this problem.




Sadly (2) is a legal requirement in Australia now, too.

If asked you MUST unlock your phone and computer. So if you’re travelling here or leaving — citizen or not — you best be prepared to have your data searched for arbitrary reasons.

I hate it.


The best defence I have seen for this is to keep all your data on cloud storage and do a base install whenever you are crossing questionable borders. Rather than a cloud provider, host your own Nextcloud instance.


I have advised similar things. Backup, factory reset while going through the border and restore once done. The fact that they can legally seize without any justification and no transparency over what is taken is still an issue though.


Do you have any sources (anecdotal or otherwise) of this power actually being used?


Maybe this shouldn't be branded purely as a security feature. There are plenty of uses for it beyond the whole duress aspect. It could be an elegant way to toggle desktop themes when you log in. Or it could give a bit of peace of mind by killing all open browser windows as you're about to log into your laptop that's hooked up to a projector.




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