On Fri, 23 Jul 2004, R. A. Hettinga wrote:

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http://www.schneier.com/crypto-gram-0407.html#3

Cryptographers and U.S. Immigration

Seems like cryptographers are being questioned when they enter the U.S. these days. Recently I received this (anonymous) comment: "It seems that the U.S. State Department has a keen interest in foreign cryptographers: Yesterday I tried to renew my visa to the States, and after standing in line and getting fingerprinted, my interviewer, upon hearing that my company sells [a cryptography product], informed me that "due to new regulations," Washington needs to approve my visa application, and that to do so, they need to know exactly which companies I plan to visit in the States, points of contact, etc. etc. Quite a change from my last visa application, for which I didn't even have to show up."

I'm curious if any of my foreign readers have similar stories. There are international cryptography conferences held in the United States all the time. It would be a shame if they lost much of their value because of visa regulations.

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It makes you wonder what they are going to do to cryptographers that try to leave the country. "Please step onto the square marked 'trap door'."