The inspection of electronic gadgets like smartphones and laptops of individuals arriving in the United States has surged by over 32 percent this year, heading towards a new record, based on data from U.S. Customs and Border Protection disclosed by CBC News.
The figures reveal that within the initial three quarters of the 2026 fiscal year (from October 1, 2025, to June 30, 2026), CBP officials scrutinized 52,080 electronic devices. In comparison, during the same period the previous year, CBP examined 39,251 devices.
Remarkably, CBP inspected nearly as many devices in the first three quarters of 2026 as it did throughout the entire 2025 fiscal year when a record 55,424 devices underwent examination.
Of the total, 47,517 were standard searches that officers can perform without any suspicion of misconduct. The remaining 4,564 were advanced searches, which permit officers to review and/or duplicate the electronic device’s contents if they suspect an illegal activity or a national security issue.
However, CBP declined to disclose the proportion of searches conducted at the northern border with Canada or the southern border with Mexico. Furthermore, they did not furnish details on searches at airports versus land borders or a breakdown by land border checkpoints.
The agency also refrained from revealing the total number of travelers who entered the U.S. in the initial three quarters of 2026 or the distinction between searches targeting U.S. citizens versus non-U.S. citizens, data typically included in their annual reports.
Jessica Turner, a public affairs officer at CBP, asserted that in 2025, electronic device searches affected only a minute fraction of the 419 million travelers entering the U.S., emphasizing that such searches are “extremely rare.”
“CBP’s electronic device border searches have been increasing consistently since 2021, with a mere 0.01 percent of travelers subject to such searches year over year,” Turner stated in an email response.
“These searches are crucial for detecting digital contraband, terrorism-linked content, and information pertinent to visitor admissibility, all contributing significantly to national security.”
On the contrary, Esha Bhandari, director of the American Civil Liberties Union’s Speech, Privacy, and Technology Project, contended that the rise in electronic device searches by U.S. border officials necessitates enhanced congressional oversight and accountability.
“The government’s rationale for the increase is unclear since no explanation has been provided,” she remarked. “It appears that when granted authority, the government tends to exercise it at the expense of travelers’ privacy.”
Bhandari highlighted that the cumulative figures disclosed by the U.S. government make it challenging to grasp the full scope of the situation.
“The stories we hear are certainly concerning,” she added.
“They are frequently interrogated at the border about their political views, writings, or religious practices, potentially leading to being singled out for a search,” she explained.
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