US Border Agents Allegedly Misused Surveillance Databases for Personal Spying and Criminal Leaks
A review of 300 incidents spanning 2009 to 2022 shows significant gaps in accountability, with dozens of cases left uninvestigated despite access to powerful facial recognition and location tracking tools.
US Customs and Border Protection officers have allegedly exploited electronic surveillance databases to spy on family members, pursue romantic interests, and provide intelligence to suspected drug traffickers. Freedom of Information Act files reviewed by Wired reveal a pattern of misconduct stretching from 2009 to 2022, involving the misuse of systems that draw from license plate readers, facial recognition, and smartphone searches.
The records detail specific instances where agents abused their access to government data. One officer is alleged to have used a government database to contact a flight attendant, while another reportedly used data from trusted-traveller applications to ask individuals on dates. In other cases, officers provided border-crossing information to individuals involved in divorce proceedings, and one employee allegedly tracked coworkers’ cellphones using ad-tech-derived location data.
Of the 300 tracked incidents identified in the files, 138 were referred to CBP management and 78 were assigned to criminal investigators. However, 43 cases were not investigated at all. While many claims were handled internally or categorised as minor misconduct, 21 were withheld due to potential law-enforcement proceedings suggesting criminal misconduct.
The Department of Homeland Security maintains one of the world’s largest surveillance systems, granting CBP access to immigration arrests, border screening records, naturalisation applications, and the SENTRI trusted-traveller program. The agency utilises Palantir’s ICM and FALCON systems, alongside the DHS Mobile Fortify facial-recognition app deployed on agents’ phones, raising concerns about the breadth of data available to individual officers.
CBP told Wired it takes misconduct allegations seriously and works to uphold the rule of law. The agency stated it holds itself accountable by taking appropriate investigatory, corrective, and disciplinary action. Historical context indicates similar allegations have occurred previously, including cases from 2010 and 2017 involving airline employees, though the resolution status of some historical cases remains unclear in public records.
