How to Protect Yourself from Phone and Device Searches at the U.S. Border

If you frequently cross into the United States — whether from Canada, by air, or at a land border — for your work, travel, or entrepreneurial lifestyle (which fits your “Sovereign Builder” / self-sovereign tech mindset), it’s important to know what can happen, what your rights are, and how you can minimise exposure when passing through checkpoints monitored by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP).

Below is a breakdown of what you should know, why this matters especially in a privacy-/self-sovereign-tech-themed lifestyle, and practical steps you can take.

1. What’s actually going on?

Scope of device inspections

• CBP officially states that “on rare occasions … CBP officers may search a traveler’s mobile phone, computer, camera, or other electronic devices” when entering the U.S. from abroad. (U.S. Customs and Border Protection)
• These searches are part of the “border search exception” to usual Fourth Amendment protections: meaning that at the border or its functional equivalent (airports, seaports, land crossings) the U.S. sovereign has broad powers to inspect persons and property. (Information Security Office)
• Recent data: In the 2025 fiscal year (Oct 2024 – Sept 2025) CBP conducted about 55,424 electronic device searches — a ~17 % increase from the previous year. (WIRED)

Types of searches & what can happen

• A “basic” search: An officer asks you to unlock the device (password/biometric) and scrolls through it manually. (WIRED)
• An “advanced” or forensic search: Using specialized tools to extract large amounts of data, even locked content. These usually require reasonable suspicion in many jurisdictions, though the standards vary. (Harter Secrest & Emery LLP)
• If you’re a non-citizen (visitor, visa holder), refusal may result in denial of entry. Even U.S. citizens cannot always prevent their device being detained. (Womble Bond Dickinson)