Your Phone’s Security Just Got a Lot More Complicated
In an age where digital privacy is increasingly paramount, the landscape of phone security is evolving rapidly. While device manufacturers are racing to encrypt everything from your photos to your deleted messages, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has been quietly building an arsenal of tools designed to dig deeper into seized devices. The agency isn’t just looking for what’s on the surface anymore—they’re hunting for data you didn’t even know existed.
The Scope of CBP’s Digital Dragnet
The scale of CBP’s digital searches is staggering. In fiscal year 2019, CBP conducted nearly 41,000 electronic device searches without seeking a warrant. By fiscal year 2021, that number had dropped slightly to 37,450 searches of international travelers’ devices. These searches are not mere cursory glances at your home screen; CBP has invested at least $1.3 million in sophisticated extraction software from companies like Cellebrite, Grayshift, PenLink, and Magnet Forensics.
What Makes Hidden Data So Different?
Traditional phone searches focus on visible data: texts, photos, call logs, and installed apps. However, hidden data extraction goes several layers deeper, targeting information that is deliberately concealed or automatically buried by your device’s operating system.
Imagine searching your desk drawers versus scanning every fiber of the wood for invisible ink. Hidden data can include steganographic information—essentially digital messages concealed within seemingly innocuous files. Research indicates that criminals increasingly use steganography to hide information, creating significant challenges for investigators trying to uncover original evidence.
For ordinary users, this means that a vacation photo you took could theoretically contain hidden data you never knew about. Studies of steganography apps have identified several with thousands of downloads, many employing least significant bit embedding techniques. The infamous Bronze Butler malware demonstrated how malicious code could be inserted into harmless JPG images, making any image file a potential hiding spot for data you didn’t even know existed.
The Tech Stack Behind CBP’s Digital Investigations
CBP’s current toolkit reads like a who’s who of digital forensics heavy-hitters. Cellebrite’s Universal Forensics Extraction Device allows law enforcement to extract data from mobile devices, including encrypted, password-protected, and deleted data. GrayKey offers "unparalleled device unlocking capabilities and rapid data extraction," while XRY Physical enables examiners to sidestep the operating system entirely to dump all system and deleted data.
Recent leaked documents revealed that GrayKey can only retrieve partial data from modern iPhones running iOS 18 or iOS 18.0.1. However, when the FBI needed to crack the Trump shooter’s phone in July 2024, Cellebrite provided new software that worked in just 40 minutes. This rapid-fire extraction capability means what used to take forensic labs weeks can now happen during an extended border detention. If cutting-edge software can unlock a phone in under an hour, the concept of "quick device searches" takes on an entirely new meaning for travelers.
How Deep Can These Searches Actually Go?
The technical capabilities of CBP’s searches are genuinely impressive—and concerning. CBP can access any information stored directly on your device, and with reasonable suspicion, officers can conduct "advanced searches" using external equipment to "review, copy, and/or analyze" device contents.
Hidden data extraction tools like StegSpy have achieved an 85% success rate in identifying steganographic content, while Hiderman has extracted hidden messages with 100% accuracy from test files. This capability operates alongside CBP’s Commercial Telemetry Data program, which purchases location data from advertising IDs. Studies show that only four data points are enough to uniquely identify 95% of individuals. The agency spent $3.8 million on Babel Street subscriptions in 2021, with policies allowing query results to be stored for up to 75 years.
What this means is that CBP isn’t just extracting hidden data from your phone—they’re combining it with years of location tracking, creating a comprehensive digital profile that follows you long after you’ve cleared customs.
What This Means for Your Next Border Crossing
The Ninth Circuit’s decision in United States v. Cano established that border officials can only conduct warrantless forensic searches when they reasonably suspect devices contain contraband. However, manual searches still require no suspicion at all.
Travelers need to understand that CBP’s expanded capabilities mean even a "basic" search can now access far more data than ever before. CBP’s latest Privacy Impact Assessment shows the agency now uses facial recognition technology and stores probe images for up to ten hours on agents’ devices. Combined with hidden data extraction tools, this represents a comprehensive digital surveillance apparatus that activates the moment you approach the border.
What You Can Do
- Power Down Completely: Before approaching the border, turn off your devices entirely—powered-off devices are harder to access.
- Use Strong Passwords: Opt for complex passwords instead of simple PINs or patterns, as CBP’s tools can crack basic numeric codes.
- Travel with a Clean Device: If you handle sensitive data, consider using a clean device for international trips.
- Know Your Rights: You can refuse to provide passwords for cloud services, but device passwords are currently required.
The ACLU and EFF continue to file lawsuits challenging warrantless device searches, arguing that phones contain "massive amounts of information that can paint a detailed picture of our personal lives." However, until the legal framework catches up to the technology, CBP’s expanded search capabilities remain largely unchecked.
The Bottom Line
If you’re crossing the border with a device, assume everything on it—including data you thought was hidden, deleted, or impossible to access—could be available to CBP. The agency’s push for more sophisticated extraction tools means the cat-and-mouse game between device security and law enforcement capabilities is far from over, and right now, the house is winning.