Warrant needed to check travelers’ devices, Federal Court says

A federal court in New York has ruled that the government must obtain a warrant before searching travelers' electronic devices at the border.

This decision came after a case where criminal defendant Kurbonali Sultanov requested to exclude evidence obtained from a search of his phone upon entering the US at John F. Kennedy Airport in New York.

According to TechCrunch, which first reported the story, Sultanov refused to provide the password to his device when officers told him he had no choice but to comply with their request.

The criminal defendant, who had allegedly possessed child sexual abuse material (CSAM), chose to suppress the evidence as it supposedly breached his First and Fourth Amendment rights, said TechCrunch.

However, this motion was rejected as the court stated that the government “acted in good faith,” according to the Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia University.

Following the incident, the Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia University and the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press filed an amicus brief (a friend of the court who advises on the defendant's behalf) arguing that this warrantless search violated Sultanov’s First and Fourth Amendment rights.

According to the Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia University, the judge relied heavily on the amicus brief while making her decision in court.

Since then, a New York federal court has concluded that warrantless searches of travelers' devices harm core First Amendment rights, including freedom of speech, freedom of religion, freedom of association, and freedom of the press.

“The ruling makes clear that border agents need a warrant before they can access what the Supreme Court has called a window onto a person’s life,” said Scott Wilkens, senior counsel at the Knight First Amendment Institute.