Wow. I have to re-enter Australia in a month. How do you suggest avoiding this? Turning it off and putting it in my checked luggage (with a password) should work shouldn't it?
Passwords don't work, because they will ask you for the passwords (for all the devices they find in your luggage as soon as you get the special treatment).
You don't have to tell it, but they also don't _have_ to let you in. Got the picture?
The best way to avoid getting singled out is to look like any other tourist with tourist clothes and a lot of luggage.
I made the mistake to mix tourist clothing with only a bag for my macbook for a short trip to Singapore while staying in Australia with a 3 month tourist/business visa.
Entering Australia with a tourist/business visa and without luggage looks suspicious. If you take a short trip to Singapore make sure you wear a business suit, or take a lot of luggage with you to look like a pissed of tourist. But nothing in between ;)
Don't bring your expensive electronics devices with you.
Instead of an iPhone, bring a cheapo dumbphone, a point-and-shoot camera, and a freshly-installed netbook, if you must.
Store what you need in the cloud and don't log into it with the netbook. If you don't want to put your data in the cloud, put it in a truecrypt volume file and name it something innocent. Uninstall Truecrypt until you're in country and can find a wifi hotspot.
I'll actually be an Australian resident (although not a citizen) returning from a visit to my home country, so maybe that changes the situation somewhat. Following your advice though, I'm guessing the main thing is to look as much as predictable as possible :)
The best way to avoid getting singled out is to look like any other tourist with tourist clothes and a lot of luggage.
I made the mistake to mix tourist clothing with only a bag for my macbook for a short trip to Singapore while staying in Australia with a 3 month tourist/business visa.
Entering Australia with a tourist/business visa and without luggage looks suspicious. If you take a short trip to Singapore make sure you wear a business suit, or take a lot of luggage with you to look like a pissed of tourist. But nothing in between ;)