Go to New Zealand? You may need to give your phone password

NOTThe 2018 Customs and Excise Act of New Zealand came into force in early October. Under the new law, customs officers can now ask travelers for their password, fingerprint or PIN at the point of entry to access their device. Those who do not comply may be liable to a fine of up to NZD 5,000 (£ 1,250).

Under previous laws, customs officers could request to see digital devices, but could not ask for a password. In addition to the fine, if you are asked to unlock your device and you do not comply with it, you can now seize and hide it for forensic testing, which will expose you to prosecution.

Customs Minister Kris Faafoi argued that the power to search electronic devices was necessary for public servants. "Many organized crime groups are becoming more and more sophisticated in the way they are trying to get things across the border," he said. "And if we think that they are up to this kind of business, then the intelligence of smartphones and computers can be useful for a pursuit."

Customs spokesman Terry Brown said exactly what was going to happen. "it's a file by file [search] on your phone. We do not go to "the cloud". We will examine your phone in flight mode ".

Although you can be searched at the border in different countries of the world, New Zealand is the first to introduce fines. The United States has a different way of dealing with non-conformists. Visitors to Donald Trump's America could be confiscated and denied access to the country. You can be returned and sent as you wish – possibly without a phone for anyone to know.

Defenders of the right to privacy in New Zealand have expressed anger over the new law. Thomas Beagle, President of the New Zealand Council for Civil Liberties, said: "Modern smartphones contain a lot of highly sensitive confidential information, including e-mails, letters, medical records, and personal, very personal photos. Allowing Customs to demand the right to examine and seize all such information constitutes a serious invasion of the privacy of the person to whom the device belongs and of persons with whom they have communicated ".

By law, agents must submit a reasonable suspicion of wrongdoing in order to gain access to your device. However, there is no requirement that this must be proven before your device is confiscated and there is currently no way to appeal at the time of confiscation.

"In fact, this law gives customs the power to take and force the unlocking of their smartphones without justification or appeal – and that's exactly what customs have always wanted," Beagle said.

Rather scathing in his remarks, the New Zealand Council for Civil Liberties also said that the law would not attack criminals, but that she "would rather catch law-abiding people … That will say that customs officers will be able to take through any device they wish. "

They believe that the imposition is "disproportionate" and have requested its withdrawal. "This part of the law can not be justified under the law of the Bill of Rights, which prohibits" unreasonable searches and seizures "and should be removed".