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The Guardian - AU
The Guardian - AU
National
Josh Taylor

Australian man says border force made him hand over phone passcode by threatening to keep device indefinitely

Australian Border Force badge on an officer’s uniform
An Australian-US dual national has lodged a complaint with Australian Border Force about being required to hand over passwords to electronic devices. Photograph: Matt Jelonek/Getty Images

Australian Border Force officials forced an Australian-US dual national to hand over his passcodes to his phone by threatening to keep the device indefinitely and then searched it out of his view, the man has alleged.

Chris*, an Australian tech entrepreneur who lives in the US with his wife and children, said he has been held up at Sydney airport for hours three times in the past year during trips to visit his family, including most recently just over a week ago.

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