Electronic Devices at the Border

CBP could check your Electronic devices and social media – Please READ AND SHARE !

Immigration section of LA county bar association and the AILA , Southern California chapter met with Customs and Border Protection (CBP ) on September 20, 2017. There were many points discussed. Here is one that might be of an interest to arriving aliens in regards to social media accounts.

Q: Do CBP officers review arriving aliens social media accounts even if the alien withholds sharing of the password?

CBP Response: As discussed in prior liaison meetings, CBP officers may examine electronic devices and may review/analyze the information encountered in the course of a border search, with or without individualized suspicion. These searches are part of the CBP’s long standing practice and are essentials to enforcing the law at the US Border. All electronic media border searches are conducted in airplane mode. Therefore, social media sites are generally not accessible. CBP officers may only access information in social media that is publicly available, unless the individual voluntarily gives consent to access the information by providing his/her password.