Ethical Hacking News
CBP's quest for advanced digital forensics tools has raised concerns about privacy and surveillance. The agency seeks new technology that can analyze data from seized electronic devices, including searching for hidden language in text messages and identifying objects across different videos.
CBP is expanding its digital forensics program to analyze data from seized electronic devices.The agency seeks new technology that can search for hidden data on phones, laptops, and other devices.The tools must be able to perform deep analysis, identify objects across videos, access encrypted messaging chats, and analyze text messages.CBP has been using Cellebrite since 2008 but claims it wants to modernize its program.The new digital forensics tools will support the Automated Targeting System, which can store device data for up to 15 years.
In a disturbing trend, Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has been expanding its digital forensics program to enhance its ability to analyze data from seized electronic devices. The agency is seeking new technology that can search for hidden data on phones, laptops, and other devices, raising concerns about privacy and surveillance.
According to documents reviewed by WIRED, CBP is asking tech companies to pitch tools that can perform deep analysis on the contents of devices seized at the US border. These tools must be capable of finding specific patterns in large datasets, identifying objects across different videos, accessing chats in encrypted messaging apps, and analyzing text messages for hidden language.
CBP has been using Cellebrite to extract and analyze data from devices since 2008, but the agency claims that it wants to "expand" and modernize its digital forensics program. The recent request for information (RFI) comes amid a string of reports of CBP detaining people entering the US, sometimes questioning them about their travel plans or political beliefs, and at times collecting and searching their phones.
One high-profile incident in March involved a Lebanese professor at Brown University's medical school who was sent back to Lebanon after authorities searched her phone and alleged she was "sympathetic" to the former Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah. In another instance, a group of cybercriminals known as the Scattered Spider hacking group has caused chaos among retailers, insurers, and airlines in recent months.
The new digital forensics tools sought by CBP will be used to support its Automated Targeting System, which is used to determine if someone presents a risk of terrorism or criminal activity. The system can store data from devices for up to 15 years.
CBP has eight active contracts with Cellebrite software, licenses, equipment, and training worth more than $1.3 million in total that will end between July 2025 and April 2026. However, the agency does not name these tools, suggesting that it may be exploring other options.
Victor Cooper, a spokesperson for Cellebrite, tells WIRED that the company is "unable to comment on active requests for information proposals." Cellebrite has a controversial history, having launched a tool in February that lets customers use AI to summarize chat logs and audio from phones. In December, Amnesty International claimed that Serbian police had confiscated a journalist's phone, used Cellebrite to extract data from it, and then used it to infect the phone with malware.
The recent request for information (RFI) comes as CBP is expanding its digital forensics program to enhance its ability to analyze data from seized electronic devices. The agency is seeking new technology that can search for hidden data on phones, laptops, and other devices, raising concerns about privacy and surveillance.
Related Information:
https://www.ethicalhackingnews.com/articles/The-Dark-Side-of-Border-Security-CBPs-Quest-for-Advanced-Digital-Forensics-Tools-ehn.shtml
https://www.wired.com/story/cbp-wants-new-tech-to-search-for-hidden-data-on-seized-phones/
https://www.jdsupra.com/legalnews/cbp-electronic-device-searches-what-you-3821677/
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/us-travel-rights-customs-border-phone-search_l_67ddc0c6e4b01b30cdda5f3a
Published: Thu Jul 3 13:27:35 2025 by llama3.2 3B Q4_K_M
