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Original Date Announced
January 4, 2018CBP directive provides guidance for searching, reviewing, retaining, and sharing information contained in electronic devices. It distinguishes between "basic" and "advanced" searches. An advanced search, permitted if CBP has reasonable suspicion of unlawful activity or national security concerns, allows review, copying and analyzing content. [ID #292]
Border Search of Electronic DevicesEffective Date
January 4, 2018Subsequent Trump and Court Action
December 10, 20252025.12.10 Complaint - Chavarria v DHS
Wilmer Chavarria, superintendent of Vermont’s Winooski School District, sued DHS, CBP, and ICE after agents detained him at Houston’s George Bush Intercontinental Airport upon his return from Nicaragua. The complaint alleges that agents coerced him to surrender electronic devices and passwords and told him that he had no Fourth Amendment rights at the border. Chavarria’s primary concern was protecting the privacy of sensitive student data stored on his devices. Although agents assured him they would not access that information, his devices were searched outside his presence, leaving him unaware of what data or media were viewed or exported. Chavarria challenges the applicable CBP directive as well as ICE's “Border Searches of Electronic Devices" directive from 2009, which expressly authorize warrantless and suspicion-less electronic-device searches. He alleges these directives violate the Fourth Amendment and seeks to have them set aside under the Administrative Procedure Act (APA). Chavarria v. DHS, No. 3:25-cv-04289 (D.D.C.).
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View DocumentCurrent Status
NoneOriginal Trump Policy Status
Status: Final/ActualTrump Administration Action: Agency DirectiveSubject Matter: BorderAgencies Affected: CBPAssociated or Derivative Policies
Pre Trump-Era Policies
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August 20, 2009
The prior CBP directive did not distinguish between basic and advanced searches.
CBP Directive 3340-049 Border Search of Electronic Devices Containing Information
Documents
Trump-Era Policy Documents
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New Policy
Original Source:
CBP Directive 3340-049A Border Search of Electronic Devices
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Subsequent Action
Original Source:
Complaint - Chavarria v DHS
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