Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has been collecting DNA from nearly 2,000 U.S. citizens, including minors, and sending the samples to the FBI’s CODIS crime database, according to an analysis by Georgetown Law’s Center on Privacy & Technology. The data, spanning from 2020 to 2024, includes approximately 95 children as young as 14, with some travelers never charged with crimes. This practice, which lacks congressional authorization, has expanded significantly since a 2020 Justice Department rule revoked a waiver from DNA collection requirements, leading to a surge in submissions.
Former FBI director Christopher Wray testified in 2023 that monthly DNA submissions increased from a few thousand to 92,000, creating a backlog of 650,000 unprocessed kits. Georgetown researchers predict that DHS could account for one-third of CODIS by 2034. The DHS Inspector General found in 2021 that the department lacked central oversight of DNA collection, raising alarm about accountability and transparency. This expansion of civil DNA collection has sparked significant debate over privacy rights and the scope of government surveillance in the United States.