Archive for April, 2008
Random search actually finds something
Apparently, a random airport customs search actually found something useful. According to Random Search Stops $600 Million In Trade Secrets Bound For China:
Jin was traveling on a one-way ticket to Beijing at the time. She declared that she had $10,000 in U.S. currency in her carry-on luggage. Customs and Border Protection officers found about $30,000 in cash.
They found several technical documents labeled “[Company A] Confidential Property,” Chinese documents, a European company’s product catalog of military technology written in English, a personal laptop computer, a thumb drive, four external hard drives, 29 recordable compact discs, and one videotape.
A search of the thumb drive and hard drives, conducted with Jin’s consent, revealed numerous documents marked “[Company A] Confidential Property.”
I’d say flying on a one-way ticket to China and carrying that much media, including four external hard drives, is
an obvious red flag. Of course, they need to realize that not everyone traveling with a laptop is a Chinese spy. I just hope this doesn’t lead to more invasive airport searches, but rather more appropriately focused ones.
