U.S. Border Agents Search 52,080 Traveler Devices in First Nine Months

U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers searched 52,080 electronic devices in the first nine months of fiscal year 2026. This period ran from October 1, 2025, to June 30, 2026. The total marks a 32 percent increase over the same period in the previous year. In the prior fiscal year, agents inspected 39,251 devices during those first three quarters.

The current pace is approaching the record set in fiscal 2025. That year ended with a total of 55,424 device searches. CBP classified 47,517 of the recent inspections as basic searches. Officers can conduct basic searches without reasonable suspicion of wrongdoing. The remaining 4,564 were advanced searches. These require reasonable suspicion of unlawful activity or a national security concern. Advanced searches allow officers to analyze or copy the contents of a device.

The agency did not provide a breakdown of where these searches took place. CBP declined to share data on the split between the Canadian and Mexican borders. It also withheld figures on the division between airports and land crossings. The agency did not release the total number of travelers who entered the country during the period. It also kept private the number of searches involving U.S. citizens versus non-citizens. These details are typically included in annual reports.

Jessica Turner, a CBP public affairs officer, addressed the volume of searches in an emailed response. She noted that 419 million travelers entered the country in 2025. Turner stated that only 0.01 percent of travelers had their devices searched in that year. She said the agency aims to detect digital contraband, terrorism-related content, and information relevant to admissibility.

Esha Bhandari, director of the American Civil Liberties Union's Speech, Privacy and Technology Project, criticized the lack of transparency. She said the government does not explain the reasons for the increase. Bhandari argued that when the government holds a power, it tends to use it to the detriment of travelers' privacy. She called the anecdotes her group receives from travelers troubling. These include requests for political opinions, writing, or religious practice.

In January, CBP updated its guidelines to expand the scope of device searches. The new rules cover flash drives, SIM cards, GPS systems, and unmanned aircraft. Vehicle infotainment systems and smartwatches are also included. The update added smuggling of narcotics and firearms to the list of target crimes. It also included transnational theft of proprietary information and digital contraband. Bhandari said these changes altered only a few procedures at the margins. She suggested the increase may reflect technological advances and a failure of federal courts to limit government authority.

Laura Dawson, executive director of the Future Borders Coalition, said the increase is hard to judge without location data. She noted that searches also occur at seaports and airports. Dawson pointed to the World Cup held this summer as a factor that may have brought a more diverse mix of visitors. She also cited greater focus on border security and closer cooperation between Canadian and U.S. border services. This cooperation includes efforts on human smuggling and the Ryan Wedding case. Dawson said having more scrutiny at the border is actually a positive in many ways.

Dawson stated that device searches remain rare despite alarming stories on social media. She calculated that one in 9,000 crossings leads to a U.S. inspection. One in 14,000 crossings leads to a search on the Canadian side. Canadian officials have searched a much smaller share of devices than their U.S. counterparts in recent years. The Canada Border Services Agency says its 2026 statistics are not yet available.