A #US Citizen Deleted His #Phone’s #Data. Now He Faces a #Felony Charge.
Federal prosecutors charged a man returning to the United States with #obstruction because he gave them a passcode that erased his #smartphone during a customs search.
#law #InfoSec #privacy
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/07/28/us/duress-password-phone-wipe-charge.html?unlocked_article_code=1.1VA.PB_S.E8UqK3lm4peR&smid=nytcore-ios-share
…Federal prosecutors in Atlanta are bringing an #obstruction charge against a #US citizen who gave customs officers what is known as a #duress passcode, which activated software that erased the contents of his #phone.
The authorities stopped Samuel Tunick, an Atlanta resident, for interrogation at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta Int’l Airport as he returned to the US Jan 24 last year, acc/to a Nov grand jury indictment. The authorities seized his phone before allowing him to enter the country.