GrapheneOS Defends Data-Wiping Function That Blocked US Border Search

GrapheneOS is defending its duress-password feature after an environmental activist used it to wipe a Pixel phone during a U.S. Customs search. The activist was subsequently indicted for allegedly destroying property under government control and faces up to five years in prison. The GrapheneOS Foundation asserts the operating system is completely legal and opposes encryption backdoors, stating that erased data cannot be recovered and the software provides essential safeguards against unauthorized data extraction.