Federal judge approves search without warrant; here’s what new ruling says on phone and laptop searches
Data stored on the device was subsequently lost.
After he eventually provided a passcode, “the screen went blank, flashed several times, and the phone appeared to restart,” according to the defence motion. Agents repeatedly asked Tunick to unlock his phone and warned that it would be seized if he refused.
Prosecutors then alleged that the wipe was a deliberate attempt to destroy potential evidence. Tunick’s lawyers maintain that the underlying search violated his constitutional rights. The GrapheneOS has a feature that allows the device owner to set a passcode that deliberately wipes the contents of that device if entered instead of the user’s unlock passcode. All travelers crossing the United States border are subject to CBP inspection. On rare occasions, CBP officers may search a traveler’s mobile phone, computer, camera, or other electronic devices during the inspection process. These searches have been used to identify and combat terrorist activity, drug smuggling, human smuggling, bulk cash smuggling, human trafficking, intellectual property rights violations and visa fraud, among other violations. They enable the discovery of digital contraband, such as child pornography, illicit transfer of restricted or classified information, or other export-controlled information. Furthermore, border searches of electronic devices are often integral to determining an individual’s intentions upon entry to the United States and thus provide additional information relevant to admissibility of foreign nationals under U.S. immigration laws.
In Fiscal Year (FY) 2025, less than 0.01 percent of arriving international travelers encountered by CBP at a port of entry had their electronic devices searched. The number of travelers crossing the border that experience a border search of their electronic devices is small. Additional statistics are available in the Frequently Asked Questions below and Relevant Policies and Documents box to the right of this page.