It’s been hard to keep track of all the ways in which America has been speedrunning toward a full-blown fascist surveillance state over the first two years of the second Trump administration. That’s partially due to the disorienting, shock-and-awe nature of each fresh injustice. But it’s mostly because of just how many they’ve been throwing at beleaguered Americans in rapid-fire succession. In the runup to the midterm elections, which polls suggest will deliver a debilitating blue tsunami to MAGA’s vitality, the chaos has only intensified as the incumbents make it clear there’s nothing they’re not prepared to do to cling to power. ICE began a fresh campaign of raids in blue state “sanctuary cities.” DHS has been targeting election centers in historically Dem-voting counties of battleground states with demands for voting records and voters’ confidential personal information under the pretext of investigating voter fraud. And early voter reports that their poorly-calibrated touchscreen machines keep glitching out—not unlike the President himself—have many fearing full-bore election rigging.
While any voting-aged Americans reading this should definitely not let any of the above intimidate them from exercising their civic rights at the polls (and triple-checking their ballot), it’s admittedly all a lot to take in. So, while it certainly can’t be described as comforting, it might be at least… grounding(?) to take a step back from the discrete outrages that make it feel like we’re increasingly living in an authoritarian nightmare and look at some hard data that proves it.
We can find that evidence in a new report that shows searches of the laptops and smartphones of visitors entering the United States have gone up 32 percent this year, according to data CBC News obtained from U.S. Customs and Border Protection. And this is with only the first three quarters of the 2026 fiscal year accounted for, which runs from Oct. 1, 2025, to June 30, 2026. The report further breaks down the numbers, explaining that border agents initiated searches on a record 55,424 devices over the entire 2025 fiscal year.
47, 517 of the searches were “basic,” which an officer can trigger at their whim, without any reasonable suspicion of wrongdoing. Even at this stage, a traveler unlucky enough to be selected for one is legally required to provide their device’s passcode so that the officer can “review and analyze information” within. If they refuse, the officer is permitted to detain the device for up to five days. That would suck.
What would suck even more: getting pulled for an “advanced” search, like the 4,564 mentioned in the CBC’s reporting. This tier of scrutiny is pretty serious. You never want to find yourself here, whether you’re an innocent lamb or guilty as sin. Because here the officer has claimed a “reasonable suspicion” that an activity which violates the law or a national security concern is likely present on the device. And now they will use forensic hacking software like Cellebrite and Grayshift to unlock the device and copy its data, even if encrypted.
“What about my Fourth Amendment protections against unwarranted searches and seizures,” you might naively be asking, still operating under the delusion that laws and rights will protect you without anyone in power enforcing them. Furthermore, if a search is considered legally justified before it occurs, then 4A has not been violated in the eyes of the law. Once they have full access, that device’s data will be thoroughly scanned by AI and the findings reviewed by humans to locate something, anything upon which to retroactively find cause and build their case against you.
Keep in mind—being on a “government-vetted terrorist watch list” is considered fair game for reasonable suspicion and who this administration considers a potential terrorist is an ever-expanding group. This is best highlighted by the September 2025 Executive Order alleges that the nebulous “ANTIFA” is a terrorist organization and the subsequent National Security Presidential Memorandum-7, which purports that ideologies of ”anti-Americanism, anti-capitalism, and anti-Christianity” or beliefs of “extremism on migration, race, and gender; and hostility towards those who hold traditional American views on family, religion, and morality” are what make an individual part of this alleged far-left domestic terrorism cabal. Are you absolutely certain that everything in your entire message history, across all platforms, would pass that inspection?
Though we’ll have to wait for an update with the total figures for 2026 once the remaining quarter has been tabulated and added to the sum, it’s clear they’ve already smashed their high score. And if we couple this new data on searches with similar reports of climbing figures from last year, we can and should assume the trend line will continue to rise.
Furthermore, as we head into this holiday season and the annual spike in airline travel, there’s a good chance Trump will simultaneously be in a post-bloodbath-election lame-duck state before new electees are sworn in. White House staffers are already warning of the impending “rampage” of firings and tantrums, should this be the case. Because if this President, in his present state, truly feels his back is to the wall and the wolves are at the door, who knows what unprecedented actions he may take in that limbo state?
Accordingly, travelers crossing America’s border in coming months should probably be more cautious with their digital hygiene than ever. Thankfully, there are some handy guides out there like this one from the Freedom of the Press Foundation which provides a robust pre-travel checklist. However, if you do decide to wipe a device, take caution and make sure you do so before handing it to an agent. Samuel Tunick, an Atlanta activist and U.S. Citizen, was recently indicted by a federal grand jury for using GrapheneOS’ “duress PIN” while being questioned at the border. He faces up to five years in prison if convicted.
Is any of this just? Not at all. Would the government’s case even hold up in court? Possibly not. But do you really want to try your luck as the test case that goes up against the Roberts Court? Or do you just want to get home after your vacation? Be safe in the here and now so things can be made right later.
