Why is TSA searching domestic flyers’ phones? New lawsuit digs for details

The ACLU wants to know why TSA is searching domestic passengers’ phones. (Image: Delta) The ACLU wants to know why TSA is searching domestic passengers’ phones. (Image: Delta) Image 1 of / 64 Caption Close Why is TSA searching domestic flyers’ phones? 1 / 64 Back to Gallery

The American Civil Liberties Union this week opened up a new front in its continuing battle to protect air travelers’ cell phones and tablets from unnecessary or improper searches of their mobile phones by government officials. The personal electronic devices of domestic US travelers are now under scrutiny by TSA.

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Last fall, the ACLU filed suit in a federal district court in Massachusetts against the Department of Homeland Security, challenging the right of U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers to confiscate and/or search the electronic devices of returning international travelers without a warrant.

Now the organization has turned its sights onto the Transportation Security Administration, filing a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) lawsuit with the federal district court in San Francisco demanding data on TSA’s searches of the electronic devices of domestic airline passengers.

“The federal government’s policies on searching the phones, laptops, and tablets of domestic air passengers remain shrouded in secrecy,” said Vasudha Talla, staff attorney with the ACLU Foundation of Northern California.

The ACLU is asking the court to order TSA’s San Francisco field office and its national headquarters to release “records related to policies, procedures, or protocols regarding the search of passengers’ electronic devices; equipment used to search, examine, or extract data from passengers’ devices; and training of the officers conducting the screenings and searches of electronic devices,” the organization said.

ACLU representatives said the organization submitted FOIA requests to TSA three months ago seeking this information but was stonewalled by the agency. They said that in October of last year, TSA announced it would implement “heightened screening procedures” for domestic air travelers’ phones and tablets, but never offered any details as to exactly how that would be carried out – or why.

“We don’t know why the government is singling out some passengers, and we don’t know what exactly TSA is searching on the devices,” Talla said. “Our phones and laptops contain very personal information, and the federal government should not be digging through our digital data without a warrant.”

You can see the full text of the ACLU’s latest court filing here.

UPDATE! We updated this story with a new post here where TSA denies searching traveler phones.

Have you ever had your phone or laptop searched prior to a domestic flight? What would you do if this happened to you?

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Chris McGinnis is the founder of TravelSkills.com. The author is solely responsible for the content above, and it is used here by permission. You can reach Chris at chris@travelskills.com or on Twitter @cjmcginnis.