How do police access seized computers?

I’ve always wondered how police get access to computers they seize in a raid. I assume that the bad guys know about passwords.

Well the Queensland Police must have had that problem as the Police Powers and Responsibilities Act 2000 has just been amended  to allow a search warrant to "order the person in possession of access information for a storage device in the person’s possession or to which the person has access at the place to give a police officer access to the storage device and the access information necessary for the police officer to be able to use the storage device to gain access to stored information that is accessible only by using the access information". (Section 71A).

Access information means information of any kind that it is necessary for a person to use to be able to access and read information stored electronically on a storage device.
Storage device means a device of any kind on which information may be stored electronically.
Stored information means information stored on a storage device.

Will that make it easier to force bad guys to hand over their passwords?

 

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