---
date: '2017-08-08'
title: 'EFF argues border agents need warrants to search digital devices'
description: "It's ludicrous that a warrant is not currently required for these searches. If a search is truly necessary, the authorities in question should be able to obtain a warrant with ease."
tags: ['politics', 'security']
---

**[The EFF:](https://www.eff.org/press/releases/eff-court-border-agents-need-warrants-search-contents-digital-devices)**

> "Our cell phones and laptops provide access to an unprecedented amount of detailed, private information, often going back many months or years, from emails to our coworkers to photos of our loved ones and lists of our closest contacts. This is light years beyond the minimal information generally contained in other kinds of personal items we might carry in our suitcases. It's time for courts and the government to acknowledge that examining the contents of a digital device is highly intrusive, and Fourth Amendment protections should be strong, even at the border," said EFF Staff Attorney Sophia Cope.<!-- excerpt -->

It's ludicrous that a warrant is not currently required for these searches. If a search is truly necessary, the authorities in question should be able to obtain a warrant with ease.
