U.S. border agents are searching travellers’ smartphones and other electronic devices at a record rate, new data suggests amid a broader immigration crackdown by the Trump administration.
The latest figures released by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) show there were 14,899 devices searched between April and June this year. That’s a 21-per cent jump from the previous quarter, and nearly 17 per cent higher than the previous highest quarterly number of 12,766 devices searched between January and March 2022.
“It’s disheartening,” James Hayes, a Vancouver-based immigration lawyer, told Global News in an interview upon learning of the uptick.
U.S. officials have broad legal authority to search electronic devices of people entering the country, regardless of citizenship, and CBP historical data shows those searches have been steadily rising over the past decade. The data does not break down those searches by type of electronic device, a term that includes smartphones, laptops, tablets and cameras.
CBP says less than 0.01 per cent of all travellers entering the U.S. are subjected to an electronic device search, and even fewer of those are seized for further inspection. In the last fiscal year, just over 47,000 devices were searched out of more than 420 million travellers processed at U.S. borders, according to CBP data.
Since U.S. President Donald Trump returned to office this year, however, there has been an increased focus on vetting the digital backgrounds of people entering the country.
The U.S. State Department said in June it would require all international student visa applicants to allow their social media to be reviewed for content deemed hostile to U.S. interests, and could reject anyone who doesn’t make their accounts public.
Earlier this year, the Canadian government updated its travel advice for people entering the U.S., warning travellers to “expect scrutiny at ports of entry, including of electronic devices.”
A spokesperson for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security denied the uptick in searches has anything to do with any directions from the Trump administration.
“Claims that CBP is searching more electronic media due to the administration change are false,” the spokesperson said in an email to Global News. “Allegations that political beliefs trigger inspections or removals are baseless and irresponsible.
Get breaking National news
For news impacting Canada and around the world, sign up for breaking news alerts delivered directly to you when they happen.
“Under the leadership of the Trump administration and Secretary (Kristi) Noem, we have the most secure border in American history. This has allowed CBP to focus to actually vet and interview the people attempting to come into our country. Lawful travellers have nothing to fear from these measures, which are designed to protect our nation’s security.”
In July, CBP put out a request for information for new data analytics systems to help the agency with “processing forensically acquired electronic data” seized from travellers for investigative purposes, “including but not limited to text, contacts, video and image data.”
The RFI noted the CBP expects its digital forensics efforts to “expand and be modernized” in the coming years.
The most recent guidance to CBP agents on electronic device searches was issued in 2018, during the first Trump administration.
The guidance says border agents cannot use the device to access information stored remotely, such as on “the cloud,” and will ask travellers to turn off their device’s connectivity or do so themselves to avoid accessing that data.
However, agents can search people’s email, text and WhatsApp messages, and any other content that’s accessible on a device.
Travellers are “obligated” to present their electronic devices and the information stored on it “in a condition that allows for the examination of the device and its contents,” the CBP says, including providing necessary passwords.
The office of Canada’s privacy commissioner says U.S. border officials “have broad inspection powers which can include seeking passwords to your laptop, tablet or mobile phone.”
Such searches do not require evidence of wrongdoing, it warns.
Refusing to hand over a device can influence a border’s agent’s decision whether to admit that person into the U.S., the CBP says. Travellers can be denied entry or even detained pending deportation.
“One of the big concerns (Canadian travellers can face) is that you could lose your visa-exempt status … and you need a visa every time you would want to enter,” Hayes said. “At the same time, expedited removal is another concern.
“People are particularly concerned about any sort of refusal or denial of entry, because it has long-standing consequences.”
Immigration lawyers and civil liberties groups say travellers can take steps to protect their data and privacy while still allowing searches of their devices at the border.
“It’s not a bad idea to clear cache, to delete history,” Hayes said. “I would be careful about what (data) syncs to the cloud and maybe cutting off some of those.”
He added those concerned about border agents accessing social media can briefly delete apps before travelling.
The Canadian privacy commissioner says Canadians should consider removing photos and other evidence of cannabis use or receipts of cannabis purchases from their devices, to reflect the drug’s illegality on the federal level in the U.S.
The American Civil Liberties Union and Canadian counterparts say travellers could consider using a “travel-only” phone or laptop that doesn’t contain any private or sensitive data during their trip.
The most important thing travellers can do, lawyers say, is to answer border agents’ questions clearly and specifically and to have all travel documents ready for review.
Hayes said the additional scrutiny is particularly concerning for Canadians.
“We haven’t seen this kind of treatment of Canadians for a long time, and I do think what that means is Canadians need to expect to be treated as anyone else seeking entry to the U.S.,” he said. “There’s no longer that kind of grace that they were given.
“It’s entirely unnecessary and unproductive, and it’s causing a lot of animosity.”
© 2025 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.
