Department of Homeland Security

Between March 2020 and March 2024, the Department of State (DoS) issued more than 12 million nonimmigrant U.S. visas without conducting in-person interviews or collecting fingerprints. At the time, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) frontline officers at U.S. ports of entry conducting...

We examined two of six pillars identified in the April 2022 DHS Plan for Southwest Border Security and Preparedness aimed at preparing for anticipated increases in migration after the end of Title 42, which prohibited introduction into the United States of certain people from foreign countries...

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) conducts minimal secondary inspections on passengers and crew disembarking cruise ships to prevent illicit drugs and contraband from entering the United States. As a result, CBP may be missing opportunities to interdict these items, which could adversely...

During our unannounced inspection of Eloy Federal Contract Facility (Eloy) in Eloy, Arizona, we found facility and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) staff complied with ICE’s Performance-Based National Detention Standards 2011, revised December 2016, for admission, classification...

The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) met requirements of the Cybersecurity Information Sharing Act of 2015. However, CISA has not finalized its plans for the continued use of Automated Indicator Sharing (AIS). Without finalizing this plan, CISA could be hindered in how it...

The Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) Port Security Grant Program (PSGP) reimbursements — totaling more than $280 million — were allowable and paid in accordance with requirements, based on our review of records for fiscal years 20182021. We did, however, question $281,045 in non-Federal...

In August 2024, we conducted unannounced inspections of four 3 U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) short-term holding 4 facilities in the San Diego area — two Border Patrol facilities and 5 two Office of Field Operations ports of entry. We found that CBP 6 facilities generally met the National...

The Department of Homeland Security Headquarters (HQ) did not adequately secure a non-Tier 1 High Value Asset (HVA) system used to support data analysis and reporting on DHS component operations, which rendered the system and its sensitive information vulnerable to cyberattacks. Although DHS HQ...

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) did not effectively manage and secure its mobile devices, resulting in vulnerabilities and higher susceptibility to cyberattacks, potential unauthorized access to law enforcement and operational sensitive information, and waste and abuse from under- or over...

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) faces limitations detecting and preventing entry of aliens carrying fraudulent documents, increasing the risk that criminals, terrorists, and other national security threat actors may enter the United States. Although CBP has capabilities to help officers...