Returning from vacation? The government can search your phone without a warrant
An immigration advocate sued CBP after agents allegedly copied his phone under the border-search exception.
Immigration advocate Kennedy sued U.S. Customs and Border Protection, alleging agents confiscated and copied his phone because of his immigrant-rights work in Florida. Federal courts recognize a border-search exception that allows warrantless searches of people, bags, and electronic devices. CBP says such searches are rare, reporting 55,318 device searches among more than 419 million travelers processed in fiscal year 2025. Kennedy argues the seizure was intended to suppress his political speech.
- An advocate alleges CBP copied his phone over political organizing.
- Courts recognize warrantless border searches of electronic devices.
- CBP searched 55,318 devices among over 419 million FY2025 travelers.
- The lawsuit claims the search aimed to suppress political speech.
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“I believe CBP flagged me because of my organizing and political work around immigrants’ rights in Florida,” he wrote in his court filing. “This isn’t the first time that law enforcement targeted and harassed me because of my political viewpoint: in 2021, after speaking out against Governor [Ron] DeSantis, the Miami Police were surveilling me and barring me from press conferences.”
Border search exemption
Federal courts have long-recognized a “border exception” to the Fourth Amendment of the US Constitution, where people, bags, and electronic devices can be searched without a warrant.
Kennedy’s story is reminiscent of a 2017 incident at San Francisco Airport, where a local artist explained to Ars how border agents there allegedly threatened to “be dicks” if he did not hand over his phone.
On its website, CBP states that it can copy such data “if there is probable cause to believe that the information contains evidence of a violation of law that CBP is authorized to enforce or administer” or “if the information relates to immigration, customs, or other enforcement matters.”
CBP says that such searches of electronic devices are very rare.
“In [Fiscal Year] 2025, out of the over 419 million travelers CBP processed at ports of entry, CBP only searched the electronic devices of 55,318 international travelers,” the agency wrote, or 0.0013%.
Still, Kennedy is angry about what happened to him.
“CBP shouldn’t have been able to confiscate my phone, let alone copy its contents,” he wrote in the complaint. “I believe they did so to suppress my political speech.”
The case was first reported by the Miami New Times.
Text extracted automatically; images, tables and formatting may be missing. Original: https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2026/09/immigration-advocate-sues-border-agents-for-demanding-his-cell-phone/