The Fourth Amendment to the Constitution of the United States protects American citizens from "unreasonable searches and seizures" and requires "probable cause" to obtain a warrant for such searches. But there are two places where the Fourth Amendment doesn't apply, even for U.S. citizens, and that's at border crossings and airports. Now, according to an investigation by NBC News, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officials are seriously ramping up efforts to take advantage of that fact.
In fact, data provided by the Department of Homeland Security to NBC showed that searches of cellphones by border agents have exploded, growing fivefold in just one year, from fewer than 5,000 in 2015 to nearly 25,000 in 2016. Moreover, 2017 is expected to be a blockbuster year with 5,000 devices searched in February alone, more than in all of 2015.
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