ICE Agents Acquire New Surveillance Tools to Track and Identify Individuals, Raising Privacy Concerns
By Jude Joffe-Block | NPR | November 8, 2025
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), a branch of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), is increasingly deploying advanced technological tools aimed at identifying and monitoring individuals, particularly noncitizens. These innovations, intended to bolster immigration enforcement efforts, have sparked significant debate among privacy advocates, lawmakers, and civil rights organizations who warn that the widespread use of such surveillance may infringe upon individual privacy and erode constitutional protections for all Americans.
New Surveillance Technologies in Use
The new tools introduced include smartphone apps that allow ICE agents to point a mobile device at a person’s face and potentially identify them along with their immigration status in real time. Some apps are capable of scanning irises for biometric identification. DHS has also licensed software that provides access to vast amounts of location-based data, which can track people’s movements. Additionally, ICE revived a previously paused contract with Paragon Solutions, an Israeli spyware company known for products capable of hacking into cell phones.
ICE is expanding its social media surveillance capabilities with new artificial intelligence-driven software that can comb through platforms such as Facebook and TikTok. The agency is even considering hiring 24/7 contractor teams dedicated to sifting through multiple databases and social media, creating detailed dossiers on users.
Context: Immigration Enforcement Goals
These technological acquisitions come amid the Trump administration’s push to increase deportations to a target of one million removals annually. The enhanced surveillance technology is viewed by federal officials as a tool to help locate and identify noncitizens subject to removal more efficiently.
Public Examples and Demonstrations
A recent video posted on TikTok showcased Border Patrol agents in Aurora, Illinois, approaching two teenagers on bicycles near a high school, questioning them about their citizenship, and attempting to use facial recognition technology for identification. Although the exact app used was not confirmed, ICE employs an app called Mobile Fortify, which searches databases for matches based on facial images and fingerprints. The app pulls data from Customs and Border Protection records, including photographs taken at U.S. ports of entry and exit, and can yield a person’s name, date of birth, alien number, and immigration status.
One troubling aspect is that individuals cannot refuse to be photographed, and images are stored for fifteen years regardless of whether a match is found.
Congressional and Advocacy Concerns
Several Democratic members of Congress have expressed deep concern and raised legal questions regarding the use of these technologies. In September, a group of senators led by Senator Edward Markey (D-Massachusetts) sent a letter to ICE demanding that the agency cease use of the mobile facial recognition app and provide transparency on its application.
Senator Markey remarked to NPR, “Americans have a right to walk through public spaces without being surveilled. This type of on-demand surveillance chills speech and erodes privacy. It ultimately undermines our democracy.” He also noted the unreliability of facial recognition technology, especially its well-documented bias against people of color, and warned of potential misuse against government critics.
Privacy and civil liberties experts echo these concerns. Emily Tucker, executive director of Georgetown Law’s Center on Privacy and Technology, described the expanding use of immigration enforcement powers as a "mass surveillance apparatus" that can be employed for any policing purpose those in power choose.
David Bier, director of immigration studies at the libertarian Cato Institute, highlighted the profound impact of real-time facial recognition in public spaces, commenting that "the whole idea of anonymity in public, it’s really gone.”
DHS and ICE Response
ICE has maintained that the use of such technologies is a continuation of long-standing law enforcement practices aimed at combating crime and ensuring enforcement of immigration laws. An ICE spokesperson stated, "Employing various forms of technology in support of investigations and law enforcement activities aids in the arrest of criminal gang members, child sex offenders, murderers, drug dealers, identity thieves and more, all while respecting civil liberties and privacy interests."
DHS emphasized that any technological tools used comply with existing oversight frameworks but declined to comment on specific vendors or operational details when questioned by NPR.
Broader Expansion of Biometric Collection
Alongside surveillance technology deployment in the field, DHS recently published a proposed rule expanding the agency’s authority to collect biometric data—such as facial images, iris scans, fingerprints, voice prints, and even DNA—from noncitizens and their U.S. citizen relatives during immigration status applications. The rule is open for public comment until early January, allowing concerned citizens to voice their views.
Questions Remain on Spyware Use
The revival of the Paragon Solutions contract, involving spyware capable of infiltrating mobile devices, has also raised alarms. Earlier this year, the spyware tool "Graphite" was reportedly used in Europe to target journalists and civil society members. Details on how ICE employs this technology domestically, however, remain largely undisclosed.
Conclusion
The rapid incorporation of advanced surveillance tools by ICE and other agencies marks a significant shift in the government’s approach to immigration enforcement and law enforcement more broadly. With privacy advocates and lawmakers seeking greater transparency and oversight, the debate over balancing national security, immigration control, and individual rights continues to intensify.
For more on this topic, listen to the NPR Weekend Edition Saturday segment with Jude Joffe-Block.
Contact NPR with any tips or information regarding surveillance technology use by federal agencies.
