First Department”: “FSB officers really have been given the right to demand devices for inspection at the border”

“First Department”: “FSB officers really have been given the right to demand devices for inspection at the border”

The office of Tajikistan’s Ministry of Labor in Russia today reported that the FSB Border Service “officially confirmed officers’ right to inspect personal phones, laptops, and other electronic devices when crossing the state border.”

The office’s statement says that “refusing to voluntarily unlock and provide a device” may be regarded as disobeying a lawful order from an official, which carries the risk of arrest for up to 15 days.

Human rights defenders from First Department remind readers that amendments allowing border guards to search the personal belongings of people crossing the border were introduced back in the summer of 2025.

FSB officers really have been given the right to demand devices for inspection at the border, and refusal carries risks of administrative punishment, says First Department lawyer Yevgeny Smirnov. Unofficially, he stressed, this practice has existed for a long time.

But are you required to provide your devices unlocked? The Constitution guarantees a number of rights that may be violated only by court order and in connection with substantiated suspicions. Among such protected secrets are the secrecy of communications, personal and family privacy,

the lawyer said.

At the same time, he stressed that this right exists only “on paper” and recommended not crossing the border with devices containing data that could compromise a person.

🩷Subscribe to TV Rain on Telegram