Fourth Amendment

Court Upholds Suspicionless Cellphone Searches at the Border

A federal appeals court says it's legal for federal agents to scroll through your phone and take pictures of its contents without a warrant or suspicion of criminal activity.

Tosin Akintola | 9.18.2026 3:05 PM

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(Midjourney)

Travelers entering the U.S. through New York, Vermont, or Connecticut should be aware: The government can search your cellphone even if it doesn't suspect you of criminal activity.

That's the crux of a ruling the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit released Thursday. Judge Steven Menashi writes that "no suspicion is required before the government searches a traveler's property at the border." Citing the Supreme Court in U.S. v. Ramsey (1977), the 2nd Circuit found that the "longstanding recognition that searches at our borders without probable cause and without a warrant are nonetheless 'reasonable' has a history as old as the Fourth Amendment itself."

In U.S. v. Smith (2023) and U.S. v. Sultanov (2024)—cases within the 2nd Circuit's jurisdiction—district courts held that law enforcement needed a warrant before searching a suspect's cellphone at the border. Thursday's ruling rejects the warrant requirement, setting a precedent for future cases in the 2nd Circuit.

The case was brought by Chinwendu Alisigwe, a permanent resident of the U.S., who was convicted in 2024 of bank fraud, conspiracy to commit bank fraud, and conspiracy to commit money laundering. 

In 2018, the United Kingdom Border Task Force seized a fake South........

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