If you thought the biggest risk from a presidential summit was a diplomatic faux pas, think again. When President Donald Trump wrapped up his two-day meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing on Friday, the security team on Air Force One made one thing crystal clear: nothing from China gets on the plane.

White House pool reporter Emily Goodin of the New York Post described the scene: staff and reporters surrendered burner phones, credential badges, and even Chinese-issued lapel pins, dropping them into a bin at the bottom of the plane's stairs. “Nothing from China allowed on the plane,” she wrote on X.

It sounds extreme, but it's not paranoia—it's protocol. China is a well-documented cyber adversary with sophisticated espionage capabilities. Governments have long used gifted items as listening devices, and burner phones are standard in high-risk environments because device compromise is assumed from the moment you arrive.

Photos and videos from the summit showed Trump, White House communications director Steven Cheung, Apple (AAPL) CEO Tim Cook, Nvidia (NVDA) CEO Jensen Huang, and Secret Service agents all wearing those now-banned lapel pins during the visit. The summit between the world's two largest economies covered heavy topics: Taiwan, Iran, trade, artificial intelligence, and fentanyl.

So next time you bring home a souvenir from a trip, be grateful the only thing you have to worry about is whether it'll fit in your suitcase.