Gal said in an interview that he couldn't understand why he was singled out by CBP, calling himself "a boring, middle-aged white male software executive." But he added: "In the past two years I've been very outspoken on the Trump administration's policies on social media, particularly with respect to Customs and Border Protection and immigration."

Gal repeated his suspicions in a post he wrote for Medium.com on April 2: "My past work on encryption and online privacy is well documented, and so is my disapproval of the Trump administration and my history of significant campaign contributions to Democratic candidates. I wonder whether these CBP programs led to me being targeted." He added that after his experience, "I travel in fear. I've reduced my international travel and my heart pounds every time I go through U.S. Customs."