Can CBP or ICE access deleted messages on a phone? (AI photo)
Many people assume that once a message is deleted, it’s gone forever. But that may not be the reality, attorney Deepak Ahluwalia warned citing a recent case of a client who was stopped at the airport and agents allegedly read deleted messages from the phone. Ahluwalia said the client indicated that he was flying into San Francisco Airport. CBP took his phone and was able to recover permanently deleted messages.Ahluwalia said this incident should not sound completely bizarre given the amount of technology and AI tools the CBP and ICE are using now. “But I found it completely fascinating that despite not being linked to any cloud service, despite having messages permanently deleted, CBP was able to retrieve and read certain messages that ultimately were being used against the entry of the individual,” the attorney said.”If you’re traveling internationally, it’s important to understand that your electronic devices may be inspected and that digital information may still be accessible, even if you believe it has been deleted,” the attorney said.
What CBP says on checking electronic devices at ports of entry
CBP says this happens on rare occasion. “On rare occasions, CBP officers may search a traveler’s mobile phone, computer, camera, or other electronic devices during the inspection process,” CBP policy said. “These searches have been used to identify and combat terrorist activity, drug smuggling, human smuggling, bulk cash smuggling, human trafficking, intellectual property rights violations and visa fraud, among other violations. They enable the discovery of digital contraband, such as child pornography, illicit transfer of restricted or classified information, or other export-controlled information. Furthermore, border searches of electronic devices are often integral to determining an individual’s intentions upon entry to the United States and thus provide additional information relevant to admissibility of foreign nationals under US immigration laws,” it said.”The number of travelers crossing the border that experience a border search of their electronic devices is small. In Fiscal Year (FY) 2025, less than 0.01 percent of arriving international travelers encountered by CBP at a port of entry had their electronic devices searched,” it said.
