Anyone who has traveled outside the United States knows that Customs and Border Protection don't need a warrant to access electronic devices. According to a report from The Washington Post, US Customs and Border Protection agents have been storing travelers' personal information in a database.
This practice has been going on since 2007, according to the report. These agents don't need a warrant to access the database and they don't have to record why they're doing it. Around 10,000 government officials are added to the database each year.
The details were revealed in a letter written by Ron Wyden. According to The Washington Post, Congressional officials are concerned about the rapid expansion of the database and the carte balance access given to Customs and Border Protection agents without a warrant.
Wyden wrote that many travelers at airports don't know their rights before they are searched.
According to Wyden, "Innocent Americans should not be tricked into unlocking their phones and laptops," and that the data should be retained for fifteen years.
The official told The Post that the agency gives its officers the authority to scroll through any traveler's device in a basic search. If they find any reasonable suspicion that a traveler is breaking the law or doing something that poses a threat to national security, they can turn into a more advanced search. When absolutely necessary, the agency only copies people's data, according to the director of office of field operations.
Senator Wyden pressed for an investigation into the government office's use of phone location data when he was in office. Customs and Border Protection spent over half a million dollars to access location data from applications used by millions of Americans.
All Rights Reserved © 2024
