When I travel to Asia this summer, I plan to leave my iPhone at home. Instead, I will put another phone in the suitcase that does not have my basic applications, such as InstagramSlack and Signal. I will not even connect to my job email.
No, I am not planning digital detoxification. I have decided to travel with what is known as disposable phone because my personal device contains confidential data that I don’t want others to registerespecially US border protection agents.
For more than a decade, the federal government has powers to make border records of travelers’ personal devices, whether telephones, laptops or tablets. In recent years, these inspections have been increasing constant, although they only affect a small part of the people who enter the United States.
Last year, the US Customs and Border Protection Office reported that it had made about 43,000 registers of electronic devices, while in 2023 it made approximately 38,000.
It should be clarified that perhaps I am very paranoid by my journalist profession, since I constantly take measures to protect the confidential sources of being revealed, so a disposable phone is an extreme measure that is not practical or necessary for most people.
Hilton Beckham, an attached commissioner of customs and border protection, said in a statement that less than 0.01 percent of travelers are recorded their devices. He indicated that these searches are made to detect content related to activities such as smuggling or terrorism and information related to the admissibility of visitors.
The problem is that, in recent incidents, several travelers have been denied entry to the United States in part due to data contained on their phone, such as weapons and social media publications photos on protests.
“The biggest concern is that the government can choose which people register”, Explained Esha Bhandari, lawyer of the American Union of Civil Liberties.” We have seen anecdotal evidence of more aggressive records on the border, even lawyers whose relationship with clients is confidential and people considered dissidents. “
In other words, although the rules to enter the United States have not changed, there may be a change in the frequency with which policies are applied. Both tourists and business travelers must be cautious about the data they carry on their devices.
There is no unique solution for everyone; The best approach to you depends on your lifestyle and your profession. This is what you have to do.
Evaluate your risk
First, Jeremiah Grossman, cybersecurity expert, Recommend that you consider who you are, what your work is and what is on your phone, laptop or tablet.
For example, if you are a retired American citizen and carry on your device some photos of your vacation and text conversations with friends from your reading club, you probably don’t have what to worry about. But if you are a student with a visa and you have participated in protests against the government, there may be materials on your phone that could create problems.
“If the security forces had everything on your phone and access to everything, would that be bad for you?” Asked Grossman.
From that hypothesis, evaluate whether your risk is high or low and choose an approach.
Low risk: Use an access code and remove some applications
If you only worry a little that you can search your data, start by deactivating biometric data, such as fingerprint sensors and facial recognition. Instead, use only in an access code to unlock your device.
To deactivate Face ID on an iPhone, open the application of adjustments, Press Face ID and Access Code, enter your password and deactivate the iphone switch.
For Android phones, the steps depend on the model, but usually in the application of adjustments you can write a menu search Facial unlock and fingerprints and deactivate the adjustments there.
Bhandari commented that using only an access code can be an effective measure for US citizens, because it is legally more difficult for the government to force you to share an access code than for an agent to take your phone and approach it to the face to unlock it.
But while citizens can refuse to provide an access code, if visas holders or tourists visiting the United States refuse to do so, they run the risk of the entrance to be denied, Bhandari added. Therefore, it is best to take the additional measure of eliminating any application that contains information that may be problematic, such as Instagram, Signal or X.
Average risk: make backups and purge your data
If you think there is a minimum possibility that the government registers your phone, Grossman proposes that you consider the option of backing all your data and purging your device before returning to the United States.
To simplify this process, you can back up your data on an online server, such as Apple Iphone or Google One for Android devices. In this way, you can later restore your data through the Internet just by introducing the passwords of your account.
To make a backup copy of an iPhone in ICloud, open the settings application, type your name, press ICLOUD and select ICLOUD backup. Activate backup of this iPhone and click back now. Next, To purge your iPhone data, in the application of adjustments go to the general menu, click or restore iPhone, press Delete all content and adjustments and follow the steps.
To make a backup of the data of an Android device on Google One, opens the application application, press Google and then backup. To purge your Android data, the steps depend on the model of your phone, but in general you can search the menu Restabo factory configuration in the application application.
After crossing the border with the deleted device, identify the option to restore the device from a backup when you want to configure it and then enter the passwords of your account to recover your data. (Just make sure you have the password scored somewhere).
High risk: carries a disposable phone
If you think it is very likely that US border agents want to look at your phone, The safer solution is to leave your personal devices at home and wear a disposable phone that you use exclusively to travel.
This is how I plan to do it.
– I will wear a cheap Android phone only with the necessary software for my trip, such as transport and maps applications.
– I will connect to an email account that I created exclusively to travel, to be able to consult itineraries and other information related to the trip.
– When you land, I will connect with a temporary mobile phone plan on a foreign network using an ESIM, a digitized version of a SIM card, which can be activated through an application like Nomad, Airalo or Gigsky. (I wrote a guide on the use of ESIM technology in an anterior column).
Then, when I return home, I will copy all the photos of my vacation phone vacation to my iPhone and keep the disposable in a drawer until my next trip.
These are some of the best practices to safeguard confidential personal data accessible through a phone before traveling.