A customs agent in Frankfurt asked to see my phone's messages last year.

I was flying back from a work trip and they pulled me aside for a random check. The agent said they needed to look through my Signal chats to 'verify my trip purpose'. I told them the app was locked with a passcode I could not remember, which was not true. They let me go after about twenty minutes of waiting, but I started using a travel-only phone with no personal data after that. Has anyone found a better way to handle these border checks without giving up privacy?

2 comments

2 Comments

kellyfoster18d agoTop Commenter

Honestly, that travel phone trick is probably the move. Border stuff is just getting wild lately.

skyler_carter18d ago

My friend in Vancouver said the same thing last month. Feels like we're all just trying to figure out the new normal.