Collaboration between ICE and private businesses

Multiple private businesses have facilitated or allegedly facilitated deportation efforts of United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), especially during the second presidency of Donald Trump, which has resulted in lawsuits, protests, and scrutiny from advocacy groups. Private prison companies have been accused of keeping detainees in poor living conditions. Many Big Tech companies have aired ICE ads, and AI-based companies have created surveillance software to help track protester anti-ICE networks and illegal immigrants.

Background

These paragraphs are an excerpt from Immigration policy of the second Trump administration.[ edit ]

Donald Trump was inaugurated for his second term as president on January 20, 2025, with one of his key campaign promises being to crack down on illegal immigration. That evening, Trump signed several executive orders related to immigration, including declaring a national emergency at the Mexico–United States border, blocking asylum seekers from entering the U.S., ending the process of "catch and release" for illegal immigrants, ending birthright citizenship for new children born to parents who are not U.S. permanent residents, suspending almost all refugee admissions to the U.S., and officially designating certain international cartels and criminal organizations as terrorists. ^[1] Trump signed the Laken Riley Act on January 29, 2025, which mandates the detention of immigrants who are charged with or convicted of certain crimes.

Trump oversaw a sharp decrease in illegal border crossings after taking office in 2025. ^[2] During the first few months of Trump's second presidency, illegal border crossings fell to the lowest level in decades. ^{[3] [4]} In addition, many visitors and immigrants already present in the U.S. were deported, while others have voluntarily left the country. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) claims that in 2025, more than 2.5 million had either been deported or voluntarily left. ^[5] In a January 2026 report, the Brookings Institution stated that the United States experienced negative net migration in 2025 for the first time in decades, which was estimated to be -10,000 to -295,000 people. ^[6] The overall strategy of the Trump administration and the often brutal tactics employed by the DHS have received widespread criticism, and protests have erupted across the country in response.

List

Company	Overview	In-depth summary
CBS News (60 Minutes)	Pulled documentary about immigrant detention facility CECOT from the air; accused of doing so due to pressure from the Trump administration	These paragraphs are an excerpt from Inside CECOT.[ edit ] "Inside CECOT" is a segment that was originally intended to be broadcast on the December 21, 2025, episode of 60 Minutes , a television news magazine from CBS News. Presented by correspondent Sharyn Alfonsi, the segment discusses the experiences of detainees at the Terrorism Confinement Center (CECOT), a maximum security prison in El Salvador used to confine Venezuelan migrants who had been deported from the US by the Trump administration in early 2025. Via interviews with former detainees and via photographic evidence, the segment describes systematic torture at the facility, independently corroborating earlier conclusions by Human Rights Watch. [7] [8] Three hours prior to broadcast, CBS News announced that the segment had been pulled and would be broadcast at a later date; Alfonsi accused CBS News's new editor-in-chief Bari Weiss of spiking the story for political reasons. Weiss claimed that the story "was not ready" for broadcast; sources within CBS News told outlets including the New York Times that two days before the anticipated broadcast, Weiss had asked the producers to arrange an interview with Trump administration operative Stephen Miller, who architected the deportation policy, or an administration operative of similar rank. [9] Alfonsi stated in an email memorandum to colleagues that the production team did request comments and interviews from White House officials, the State Department, and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS, which were all refused), and that the segment was reviewed five times and approved by the CBS legal department and Standards and Practices division. [10] [11] On December 22, 2025, a cut of the episode that still contained the "Inside CECOT" story was accidentally made available online by Canadian broadcaster Global, causing the segment to be widely disseminated. The segment was shared en masse by activists, causing it to quickly spread across the internet; most iterations of it were removed after CBS began issuing takedown orders via the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, though it remains on archival sites and several irregular distribution platforms. Weiss met with major backlash from numerous journalists, progressive groups, and public officials, who deemed the cancellation unjustified, and to have been carried out at the behest of the Trump administration. The segment eventually aired in a modified form on the January 18, 2026, episode of 60 Minutes; while the body of the report was unchanged, it was updated to include a new intro and outro by Alfonsi with statements from White House and DHS officials, as well as acknowledgements of the United States' subsequent intervention in Venezuela and capture of president Nicolás Maduro in January 2026.
Clearview AI	$9.2 million contract for facial recognition technology using database with over 50 billion faces [12]	These paragraphs are an excerpt from Clearview AI § U.S. federal immigration contracts.[ edit ] In September 2025, Clearview signed a $10 million dollar contract in 2025, making it their largest American federal contract to date, the second being one signed in 2021 for $2.3 million for United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents to use. [13] The Department of Homeland Security claimed they will only use the app to identify child predators and to investigate assaults against law enforcement officers, and in 2026, at least eight people have been wrongfully arrested so far due to false positives from the app. [14] They have also provided services to Customs and Border Protection (CBP). [15]
CoreCivic	Private prison company that kept detained foreign nationals in their prisons under contract with ICE; an employee helped characterize a makeup artist as a gang member; was targeted by a class action lawsuit for poor prison conditions	These paragraphs are an excerpt from CoreCivic § Federal class action over California City Detention Center.[ edit ] Seven immigrants sued ICE and DHS in November 2025, alleging inhumane conditions at CoreCivic's California City Detention Facility in the remote Mojave Desert. Represented by the Prison Law Office and the American Civil Liberties Union, detainees reported freezing cells infested with insects, lack of medical care, shower stalls full of sewage, and limited access to lawyers. The lawsuit came on the heels of a detainee hunger strike following the center's re-opening without proper permits. A spokesman for CoreCivic's 2500-bed facility said "the safety, health and well-being of the individuals entrusted to our care is our top priority. " The facility was a former state prison that had been closed in March 2024. [16] [17] These paragraphs are an excerpt from T. Don Hutto Residential Center.[ edit ] The T. Don Hutto Residential Center (formerly known as T. Don Hutto Family Residential Facility, and the T. Don Hutto Family Detention Facility [18] ) is a guarded, fenced-in, multi-purpose center currently used to detain foreign nationals awaiting the outcome of their immigration status. The center is located at 1001 Welch Street in the city of Taylor, Texas, within Williamson County. Formerly a medium-security state prison, it is operated by the CoreCivic under contract with the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency (known as ICE) through an ICE Intergovernmental Service Agreement (IGA) with Williamson County, Texas. [19] [20] In 2006, Hutto became an immigrant-detention facility detaining immigrant families. [21] The facility was turned into a women's detention center in 2009. [22] These paragraphs are an excerpt from CoreCivic § Role in deporting people on false pretenses.[ edit ] In 2025, a CoreCivic employee, Charles Cross Jr., played an instrumental role in characterizing a gay Venezuelan makeup artist as a member of the Tren de Aragua gang, which the Trump administration used as justification to deport the Venezuelan man to El Salvador's Terrorism Confinement Center. Cross was fired from the Milwaukee Police Department in 2016 for driving a car into a family's home while drunk. CoreCivic hired him four months later. [23]
Flock Safety	Surveillance cameras were used by immigration enforcement agents	Main article: Flock Safety In May 2025, it was reported by 404 Media that Flock data had been queried for use in immigration enforcement. [24] According to the company, a pilot program of investigation with Customs and Border Protection and Homeland Security Investigations was initiated to help combat human trafficking and fentanyl distribution. Flock halted the program in August because of "confusion and concerns" about the purpose of the investigations. [25] In August 2025, 19 Flock Safety cameras in Evanston, Illinois, were deactivated and slated for termination after a conclusion that Flock violated state privacy laws regarding the sharing of Illinois data with federal immigration agents. [26] [27] [28] [29] By early September, most of cameras were removed, but were reportedly reinstalled again in locations near to the original ones, despite an absence of authorization from the city. [30] [31]
GEO Group	Private prison company that kept detained foreign nationals under contract with ICE; criticized for poor prison conditions	These paragraphs are an excerpt from GEO Group § 2020s.[ edit ] In 2025, Rümeysa Öztürk, a Tufts University PhD student, was held at the South Louisiana ICE Processing Center (SLIPC), a GEO detention center in Basile, Louisiana. In court filings, she alleged that it took 20-60 minutes for a nurse to arrive when she was having asthma attacks. She also noted there were not enough language interpreters. In general, she stated, the prison conditions are "depriving us of basic human needs." [32] In September 2025, human rights organizations including the American Civil Liberties Union of Louisiana filed complaints on behalf of four trans individuals detained at SLIPC under the Federal Tort Claims Act and submitted a civil rights complaint to US Department of Homeland Security oversight bodies [33] alleging sexual harassment, medical neglect, coerced labor, retaliation and other abuses from GEO staff dating from 2023. GEO denied the allegations. [34] On December 12, 2025, ICE detainee Jean Wilson Brutus died apparently of natural causes after having been brought to GEO Group facility Delaney Hall hours earlier. GEO Group referred media questions about the death to ICE. [35]
Hilton Worldwide	Hilton Worldwide shut down a hotel that refused service to ICE agents; protesters in NYC occupied a Hilton hotel lobby and 50-70 were arrested	These paragraphs are an excerpt from Hilton Worldwide ICE lodging controversy § Lodging of ICE officers.[ edit ] In January 2026, Hilton withdrew franchise status from a Minneapolis franchisee that sought to prevent United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) from staying in their hotel. [36] Financial advice expert Ramit Sethi organized a boycott of Hilton properties and asked his fans to cancel their reservations. [37] Minnesota residents also protested several times late at night outside Canopy by Hilton and Graduate by Hilton properties where a large number of ICE officers were reportedly staying, playing drums and making noise to protest the officers' presence in their city. [38] [39] Similarly, civil rights attorneys organized a campaign to have Hilton Honors members cancel their accounts in protest of Hilton, accusing the company of being complicit in ICE's actions. [40] Protesters in the TriBeCa hotel (top left) Protesters chant outside the hotel (top right) NYPD Strategic Response Group blocks protesters outside while police escort arrestees from TriBeCa hotel to jail truck (bottom row) These paragraphs are an excerpt from Hilton Worldwide ICE lodging controversy § Protests.[ edit ] On January 27, 2026, three days after the killing of Alex Pretti, dozens of protesters in New York City took over the lobby of a TriBeCa Hilton hotel. [41] [42] [43] [44] [45] Protesters alleged federal immigration agents had previously lodged there. [41] More than 100 protesters entered the hotel on Sixth Avenue near Canal Street at about 6pm wearing black T-shirts with anti-ICE slogans. [42] Protesters from a separate anti-ICE rally gathered outside to show support [42] and police surveillance drones circled overhead. [45] At 6:35pm, officers entered the lobby and warned protesters to leave or face arrest. [42] Many protesters left, and reporters were forced to leave the lobby. [42] About 50 [42] to 70 [44] protesters remained and were arrested. At 7:30pm, the NYPD Strategic Response Group began making arrests, lifting protesters off the floor, zip tying their hands, and bringing them to a waiting bus. [42] Protests remained outside during and after the arrests. [42] They chanted "Which Side Are You On?" [44] Others held signs and banners saying "Abolish ICE" and "ICE out of New York," or banners with pictures of people who were killed by federal immigration agents. [45] One organizer for the protest said "they're [not just] taking people off the streets [...] but killing them blatantly in broad daylight with no due process." [41] A former Minneapolis resident in the crowd said "this feels different. This feels on the precipice of it being a lot more scary." [41] Mayor Zohran Mamdani praised the protesters for peacefully exercising their rights and the police for their presence through a spokesman. [42]
Home Depot	Accused by protesters of not doing enough to prevent ICE arrests of illegal immigrant employees at their stores	Anti-ICE protest stops outside Home Depot, New York City, January 2026 These paragraphs are an excerpt from Home Depot § Targeting of undocumented workers.[ edit ] Home Depot has had a decades-long track record of employing workers who are illegal immigrants, many as roofers, painters, or construction workers. [46] [47] In May 2025, top White House official Stephen Miller directed ICE to target Home Depot day laborers to find illegal immigrants to deport. [48] The Washington Post reported that "ICE agents appeared to follow Miller's tip and conducted an immigration sweep Friday at the Home Depot in the predominantly Latino neighborhood of Westlake in Los Angeles." [48] One man going to a Home Depot in Westlake noticed the men who regularly gather outside looking for work were missing. [49] Earlier that day, a moving van containing a group of federal agents wearing border patrol vests pulled up to a Home Depot, at which point the back door opened and the agents "ran into the parking lot" and detained 16 people. [50] One undocumented day laborer told CNN "Right now, I'm behind on my rent because I'm scared of getting detained at the corner of Home Depot or having an encounter with ICE." [47] According to NPR, some Home Depot workers on Reddit told stories about how raids have caused fewer contractors to visit stores, whereas others have said it's business as usual. [49] In a social media post, Home Depot downplayed the incidents, saying they tell employees to report incidents and avoid interactions with immigration agents, [47] [49] and in the statement they referred to a mandate to follow "all federal and local rules and regulations." [51] [49] NPR characterized Home Depot as "keeping quiet" in the midst of immigration raids at their stores across the country. [49] ICE raids have not significantly impacted Home Depot sales. [49] These paragraphs are an excerpt from Home Depot § Protests.[ edit ] After the ICE raids at Home Depot, Home Depot has been the target of anti-ICE protests at stores in Mercer County, New Jersey, Los Angeles, Ladera Heights, Greenfield, Indiana, and New York City. [51] [52] [53] In Mercer County, one protester said "We want Home Depot to do something, to pass a policy, to say something." [51] 50 protesters with ICE Out of New Jersey bought $2.97 ice scrapers in New Jersey and immediately returned it to stall the store's operations, [51] a type of protest used at other Home Depot stores across the country. [52] Protesters also urged shoppers to boycott Home Depot. [51] Police arrived and told protesters to leave the property. [51] In Ladera Heights, during an ice scraper protest focused on Home Depot's "complicity" in "violating civil rights," a store was shut down for the day in its entirety. [52] One activist said "I think they have a responsibility and certainly a moral obligation to defend day laborers." [49]
Key Lime Air	Provided air charter services to transport detainees to ICE detention facilities	These paragraphs are an excerpt from Key Lime Air § ICE deportation flights.[ edit ] Advocates monitoring United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) deportation flights in 2025, including Human Rights Watch, identified Key Lime Air as one of the charter operators flying deportees to ICE detention centers. Shackled deportees were seen boarding aircraft registered to a company affiliated with Key Lime at Willow Run Airport and King County International Airport, and disembarking at El Paso; Alexandria, Louisiana; Harlingen, Texas; and Lake City, Florida, site of the nearest airport to the Alligator Alcatraz detention facility. [54] [55] In December 2025, citing opposition to the ICE flights, the Denver City Council voted to deny Key Lime a lease for ground storage space at Denver International Airport, where Key Lime operates Denver Air Connection flights. The City Council lacks the authority to directly stop Key Lime from using the airport, and the airline can still use the common apron area at the airport for free; according to council members, the cancellation of the lease is aimed at jeopardizing $90 million in Federal Aviation Administration airport grants, which they believe will pressure the airline to vacate the airport. [56] [57] In January 2026, local advocates pressed the Wayne County Airport Authority board to stop Key Lime from operating ICE flights from Willow Run, but the board said it does not control agreements between airlines and federal agencies as long as they meet legal and safety requirements. [54]
HBO Max	Aired ICE recruitment ads [58]
Hulu	Aired ICE recruitment ads [58]
Microsoft	Provided Azure cloud services to ICE in 2019; NYC protesters shut down a Microsoft campus	These paragraphs are an excerpt from Criticism of Microsoft § Ties to US Government departments.[ edit ] On September 14, 2019, Microsoft's flagship store was shut down by protestors as part of a direct action organized by Close the Camps NYC. The action was in response to Microsoft's $19.4 million contract with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). [59] [60] [61] [62] Microsoft's relationship with the immigration enforcement agency was revealed by executive Tom Keane, through a company blog post that describes ICE's use of the company's high-security cloud storage product Azure Government. [63] He went on to say the company is "proud to support" the work of ICE. [63] Microsoft has stated it "is not working with the U.S. government on any projects related to separating children from their families at the border." [62]
NEC	Created an AI facial recognition app for ICE agents to identify individuals and their potential immigration status.	These paragraphs are an excerpt from Mobile Fortify.[ edit ] Mobile Fortify is a mobile app used by United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) on their government-issued phones. The app allows agents to take a photo, ostensibly from their work-issued mobile phone, in order to gather biometrics, including contactless fingerprints and faceprints, for the purpose of identifying an individual and their potential immigration status. [64] [65] The app was created by NEC. [66] These paragraphs are an excerpt from Mobile Fortify § Technology.[ edit ] Unlike other facial recognition software, Fortify uses federally linked databases. By contrast, Clearview AI uses public social media databases for biometric scanning. Federal databases include DHS's automated biometric identification system (IDENT), containing more than 270 million biometric records, and Customs and Border Protection's Traveler Verification Service. The State Department's visa and passport photo database, the FBI's National Crime Information Center, National Law Enforcement Telecommunications Systems, and CBP's TECS and Seized Assets and Case Tracing System (SEACATS). [64] [65] These paragraphs are an excerpt from Mobile Fortify § Criticism.[ edit ] Mobile Fortify, and ICE's use of similar biometric identification technologies (such as Mobile Identify, an app similar to Mobile Fortify to be used by local or regional law enforcement to assist in immigration enforcement [67] ) has faced scrutiny from a variety of digital rights organizations, politicians, and news outlets. [68] [69] [70] [71] Facial recognition technologies are known to produce false-positives and generally unreliable results, especially on those with darker skin tones. [72] [64] ICE has already previously mistakenly arrested a U.S. citizen under the belief he was illegally in the country, and later stated that he "could be deported based on biometric confirmation of his identity" prior to his release. [71] U.S. representative Bennie Thompson, ranking member of the House Homeland Security Committee has previously commented that "ICE officials have told us that an apparent biometric match by Mobile Fortify is a ‘definitive’ determination of a person’s status and that an ICE officer may ignore evidence of American citizenship—including a birth certificate—if the app says the person is an alien," and that "Mobile Fortify is a dangerous tool in the hands of ICE, and it puts American citizens at risk of detention and even deportation," [73] [74] On Jan 19, 2026, 404 Media reported on a case where a woman, identified in court documents as "MJMA", was scanned by Mobile Fortify twice in the same interaction, and two entirely different names were provided by the app. According to the Innovation Law Lab, whose attorneys are representing MJMA, both of the names were incorrect. [75] [76] ICE has stated that they will not allow people to decline to be scanned by Mobile Fortify, and that photos taken, even those of U.S. citizens, will be stored for 15 years, [77] something that has been criticized primarily because ICE has not performed a Privacy Impact Assessment (PIA) for Mobile Fortify, the right to decline other forms of biometric verification to the U.S. government is often available under other circumstances, [78] and the 15 year window is viewed as unnecessarily large. [69]
Palantir Technologies	Created an AI-based app for ICE, partially based on government records, that predicts where illegal immigrants may be residing	These paragraphs are an excerpt from Palantir Technologies § Second Trump administration (2025).[ edit ] According to required financial disclosures, Stephen Miller, who as United States homeland security advisor has been actively involved in the second Trump administration's deportation efforts, owns between $100,000 and $250,000 of Palantir stock; some Trump critics have raised concerns about a potential conflict of interest. [79] [80] [81] Similar financial disclosure requirements of U.S. government employees show that at least 10 other members of the Trump administration own Palantir stock. [82] Advocacy groups such as the Alliance for Secure AI have also criticized Palantir's use of AI during the second Trump administration. [83] [84] In December 2025, it was reported that Palantir had begun developing a portal for the Department of Education, allowing universities to report foreign donations. The company is acting as a subcontractor of Monkton, a computer and network security company, which won a $9.8 million contract to design, develop, and deploy a "Section 117 Information Sharing Environment Capable of Providing Greater Transparency". [85] These paragraphs are an excerpt from Palantir Technologies § ELITE.[ edit ] ELITE (Enhanced Leads Identification and Targeting for Enforcement) is a software tool Palantir developed for the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency. The program provides a digital map populated with information about potential deportation targets, pulling data from the United States Department of Health and Human Services (which includes Medicaid), among other sources, to provide an estimated location of where a target of the agency may be residing. [86] [87]
Paragon Solutions	$2 million contract selling spyware, such as phone hacking software, to ICE, especially to infiltrate anti-ICE protesting networks	These paragraphs are an excerpt from Paragon Solutions § United States.[ edit ] Paragon sells to the United States government. [88] The New York Times reported that the Biden administration allowed the Drug Enforcement Administration to use Graphite. [89] Paragon reportedly hired WestExec Advisors in 2019, as well as Holland & Knight in 2023, to advise it on remaining in the US government's good graces. [90] [91] In March of 2023, President Joe Biden issued Executive Order 14093, banning "operational use by the United States Government of commercial spyware that poses risks to national security or has been misused by foreign actors to enable human rights abuses around the world." [92] [93] [94] In 2024, a $2 million contract with US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) [95] was reportedly paused and placed under compliance review, "to review and verify compliance with Executive Order 14093." According to Wired , experts said that "the level of seriousness with which the US government approaches the compliance review of the Paragon contract will influence international trust in the executive order." [96] Following the January 2025 inauguration of President Donald Trump, the second Trump administration reversed or circumvented the Biden-era ban, and began acquiring phone-hacking spyware (notably Paragon Solutions' Graphite. [97] [98] ). In 2025, Trump lifted the pause, allowing ICE to use Paragon's spyware tools. [99] Late September, 2025, Trump labeled "Antifa" a "domestic terrorist organization," and issued an executive order to all federal agencies to investigate it. ICE acting director, Todd Lyons, said in an interview that ICE will investigate anti-ICE protester networks, "to track the money. We are going to track these ringleaders... and... professional agitators." In October 2025, reporter Rachel Maddow warned that ICE's new surveillance resources -- including their spyware, which can be covertly inserted into anyone's phone from a drone hovering over a protest -- can be used to target and spy on anyone without a warrant, including any political opposition. Former government officials, Democratic politicians, and civil rights advocates, have complained that ICE is now being permitted and empowered to engage in sweeping surveillance and tracking of Americans engaging in constitutionally permissible political action. [100] [101] [97] [98] [95]
Snapchat	Aired ICE recruitment ads [58]
Spotify	Aired ICE recruitment ads; later stated they would no longer air ads for ICE	These paragraphs are an excerpt from Criticism of Spotify § ICE recruitment ads.[ edit ] In October 2025, Spotify was criticized for running recruitment advertisements for ICE after receiving $74,000 from the Department of Homeland Security. [102] [103] In January 2026, Spotify confirmed ICE ads are no longer running on their platform after the government advertising campaign ended. [104] Later that month, the advocacy group Indivisible sent a public letter to Spotify's new CEOs calling on the company to stop running further ICE ads going forward. [102]
YouTube	Aired ICE recruitment ads [58]

References

1. Kanno-Youngs, Zolan; Aleaziz, Hamed; Sullivan, Eileen (January 20, 2025). "Trump Starts Immigration Crackdown, Enlisting the Military and Testing the Law". The New York Times . Retrieved January 21, 2025.
2. "Southwest Land Border Encounters". U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
3. Montoya-Galvez, Camilo (2025-03-03). "Amid Trump crackdown, illegal border crossings plunge to levels not seen in decades". CBS News. Retrieved 2025-07-23.
4. Contreras, Russell (2025-07-15). "Illegal border crossings hit decades-low amid Trump hardline crackdown". Axios. Retrieved 2025-07-23.
5. "Under President Trump and Secretary Noem, the Department of Homeland Security Has Historic Year". www.dhs.gov. Retrieved 2026-01-13.
6. Romero, Laura (2026-01-13). "US, for 1st time in 50 years, experienced negative net migration in 2025: Report". ABC News. Retrieved 2026-01-15.
7. Stelter, Brian (2025-12-23). "'60 Minutes' story shelved by Bari Weiss streamed in Canada — and instantly spread across the web". CNN. Retrieved 2025-12-23.
8. Amatulli, Jenna (2025-12-23). "60 Minutes episode on brutal El Salvador prison, pulled from air by CBS, appears online". The Guardian.
9. Grynbaum, Michael M. "'60 Minutes' Pulled a Segment. A Correspondent Calls It 'Political.'". New York Times.
10. Stelter, Brian (December 22, 2025). "Inside the Bari Weiss decision that led to a '60 Minutes' crisis". CNN. Retrieved December 24, 2025.
11. Folkenflik, David (2025-12-22). "CBS News chief Bari Weiss pulls '60 Minutes' story, sparking outcry". NPR. Retrieved 2025-12-23.
12. "ICE contracts with Clearview AI for facial-recognition technology". Immigration Policy Tracking Project. 9 September 2025. Retrieved 20 January 2026.
13. Brewster, Thomas. "ICE To Pay Up To $10 Million For Clearview Facial Recognition To Investigate Agent Assaults". Forbes. Archived from the original on 2025-09-08.
14. Dou, Eva; Galocha, Artur; Schaul, Kevin (January 29, 2026). "The powerful tools in ICE's arsenal to track suspects — and protesters". The Washington Post . Archived from the original on 2026-01-29. Retrieved January 29, 2026.
15. McDonald, Ryan Mac, Caroline Haskins, Logan (28 February 2020). "Clearview's Facial Recognition App Has Been Used By The Justice Department, ICE, Macy's, Walmart, And The NBA". BuzzFeed News. Retrieved 13 June 2024.
16. "Why California's newest detention facility faces federal lawsuit over medical neglect and 'punitive' unsanitary conditions". Los Angeles Times. 2025-11-13. Retrieved 2025-11-13.
17. Levin, Sam (27 September 2025). "'Hell on earth': immigrants held in new California detention facility beg for help". The Guardian. Retrieved 27 September 2025.
18. Locking Up Family Values, Again (PDF), Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service and Women’s Refugee Commission, October 2014, p. 31, archived from the original (PDF) on 14 February 2017, retrieved February 14, 2017, Conditions at the T. Don Hutto Family Detention Facility, and the impact of detention on families and children, proved that family detention could not be carried out humanely
19. "Facility Locations List". Corrections Corporation of America. Archived from the original on 2007-11-11. Retrieved 2007-12-06.
20. Don Hutto Family Residential Facility Archived 2011-06-22 at the Wayback Machine
21. Margaret Talbot (March 3, 2008), "The Lost Children: What do tougher detention policies mean for illegal immigrant families?", The New Yorker , retrieved February 13, 2017
22. Tom Dart (October 29, 2015), "More than 20 women detained in Texas immigration facility begin hunger strike", The Guardian , retrieved February 13, 2018
23. Penzenstadler, Rick Jervis and Nick (2025). "Gay Venezuelan stylist sent to Salvadoran prison after a disgraced cop's report". USA TODAY.
24. Koebler, Jason; Cox, Joseph (May 27, 2025). "ICE Taps into Nationwide AI-Enabled Camera Network, Data Shows". 404 Media. Archived from the original on June 2, 2025. Retrieved June 2, 2025.
25. O'Connor, John (August 25, 2025). "License plate camera company halts cooperation with federal agencies among investigation concerns". Yahoo News. Associated Press. Archived from the original on August 25, 2025. Retrieved August 26, 2025.
26. Harrison, Alex (September 24, 2025). "City sends cease-and-desist after Flock reinstalls license plate cameras". Evanston RoundTable. Retrieved October 23, 2025.
27. Adams, Andrew (August 27, 2025). "Hundreds of police departments use camera company accused of breaking state law - IPM Newsroom". Archived from the original on October 23, 2025.
28. Harrison, Alex (August 27, 2025). "Evanston shuts down license plate cameras, terminates contract with Flock Safety". Evanston RoundTable. Archived from the original on August 27, 2025.
29. "Giannoulias' Audit Finds License Plate Reader Company in Violation of State Law". Illinois Secretary of State. August 25, 2025.
30. Harrison, Alex (September 24, 2025). "Evanston orders Flock to remove reinstalled cameras". Evanston RoundTable. Archived from the original on September 24, 2025.
31. "After Evanston fires Flock, it reinstalls license-plate readers, so Evanston covers them". Chicago Tribune. September 29, 2025. Archived from the original on September 29, 2025.
32. Gross, Samantha; McDonnell Nieto del Rio, Giulia (2025-05-05). "Detained Tufts student Rümeysa Öztürk sounds alarm on conditions in Louisiana detention facility". The Boston Globe . Archived from the original on 2025-05-08. Retrieved 2025-06-14.
33. "RE: Systemic Sexual Abuse and Harassment, Physical Assault, Verbal Abuse and LGBTQ+ Discrimination, Forced Labor, Retaliation, Medical Neglect and Disability Discrimination, Excessive Use of Solitary Confinement, Suppression of Constitutional Rights, and Denial of Grievance Procedures at the South Louisiana ICE Processing Center in Basile, Louisiana" (PDF). rfkhumanrights.org. Retrieved 16 October 2025.
34. Singh, Maanvi (16 October 2025). "Queer and trans immigrants allege forced labor and sexual assault in Ice facility: 'I was treated worse than an animal'". The Guardian. Retrieved 16 October 2025.
35. Tully, Tracey; Ferré-Sadurní, Luis (19 December 2025). "ICE Detainee Dies After Being Held at a Troubled Jailhouse in Newark". New York Times. Retrieved 24 December 2025.
36. Mangan, Dan (2026-01-06). "Hilton Hotels removing Minneapolis franchise location after it again denied DHS booking". CNBC. Retrieved 2026-01-07.
37. "'Kudos to any company who...': Indian-origin entrepreneur on Hilton Hotels refusing room to ICE officers in Minneapolis". The Times of India. 2026-01-08. ISSN   0971-8257 . Retrieved 2026-01-08.
38. "Hundreds protesting outside downtown Minneapolis hotel where ICE officers are believed to be staying". kare11.com. 2026-01-09. Retrieved 2026-01-10.
39. Skluzacek, Josh (2026-01-14). "Anti-ICE protests continue with demonstrations at Graduate hotel, Whipple Federal Building". KSTP.com 5 Eyewitness News. Retrieved 2026-01-14.
40. Gellis, Cathy (2026-01-08). "Dear Hilton: Lose My Number". Techdirt. Retrieved 2026-01-12.
41. Finley, Louis (January 27, 2026). "Anti-ICE protest inside Tribeca Hilton leads to dozens of arrests". Spectrum News NY1. Retrieved January 27, 2026.
42. Shanahan, Ed; Bensimon, Olivia (January 27, 2026). "Dozens Arrested After Anti-ICE Protest at a Manhattan Hilton". The New York Times. Retrieved January 27, 2026.
43. "Anti-ICE protest breaks out at Tribeca hotel; at least 40 people arrested: sources". ABC7 New York (WABC-TV). January 27, 2026. Retrieved January 27, 2026.
44. Gustafson, Spencer; DiLorenzo, Anthony (January 27, 2026). "Anti-ICE protesters arrested after NYC hotel lobby takeover: Police". PIX11. Retrieved January 27, 2026.
45. Ocomartun, Ronan (January 27, 2026). "Thousands of New Yorkers gather in Union Square Park over the weekend to protest ICE". The New School Free Press. Retrieved January 27, 2026.
46. Greenhouse, Steven (10 October 2005). "Day Laborer Battle Runs Outside Home Depot". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 9 December 2023. Retrieved 23 January 2026.
47. Meyersohn, Nathaniel (18 July 2025). "How Home Depot became a magnet for day laborers and a target for ICE". CNN. Cable News Network. Archived from the original on 23 July 2025. Retrieved 23 January 2026.
48. Findell, Elizabeth; Simon, Ruth; Hackman, Michelle; Parti, Tarini (9 June 2025). "The White House Marching Orders That Sparked the L.A. Migrant Crackdown". The Wall Street Journal. Dow Jones & Company. Archived from the original on 15 June 2025. Retrieved 23 January 2026.
49. Selyukh, Alina; Baker, Liz (19 August 2025). "Home Depot keeps quiet on immigration raids outside its doors". NPR. National Public Radio. Retrieved 23 January 2026.
50. Rainey, Libby (6 August 2025). "Federal agents detain people at a Westlake Home Depot after jumping out of rented Penske moving van". LAist. Southern California Public Radio. Archived from the original on 23 January 2026. Retrieved 23 January 2026.
51. Nieto-Munoz, Sophie (19 December 2025). "Anti-ICE protestors target Home Depot to denounce immigration arrests". New Jersey Monitor. States Newsroom. Retrieved 23 January 2026.
52. Anderson, Steve (22 January 2026). "Anti-ICE Protests Shut Home Depot Store: Home Depot Stock (NYSE:HD) Slips". TipRanks. Retrieved 23 January 2026.
53. Hoffman, Erin-Leigh (20 January 2026). "Local activists demand The Home Depot condemn ICE raids". Greenfield Recorder. Retrieved 23 January 2026.
54. "Advocates demand Wayne County Airport Authority halt ICE flights out of Willow Run airport". Michigan Advance. January 22, 2026. Retrieved January 25, 2026.
55. Wilson, Sara (October 23, 2025). "Colorado airline operates flights for ICE, records show". Colorado Newsline. States Newsroom . Retrieved January 28, 2026.
56. Wilson, Sara (December 15, 2025). "ICE flights cited in Denver's denial of Key Lime airport lease". Colorado Newsline. States Newsroom . Retrieved January 28, 2026.
57. Roch, Lincoln (December 16, 2025). "Denver council rejects airport lease for ICE contractor Key Lime Air". The Colorado Sun. Denver. Retrieved January 28, 2026.
58. Brickner-Wood, Brady (January 7, 2026). "ICE's New-Age Propaganda". The New Yorker. Archived from the original on January 7, 2026. Retrieved January 15, 2026.
59. Vera, Amir (September 14, 2019). "76 anti-ICE protesters arrested during New York sit-in". CNN. Archived from the original on September 20, 2019. Retrieved September 19, 2019.
60. "'Abolish ICE' protesters face off with police in midtown [VIDEO]". MSN. Archived from the original on September 15, 2019. Retrieved September 19, 2019.
61. NYC, Close the Camps (September 14, 2019). "RELEASE — PROTESTORS DEMAND MICROSOFT STOP PROFITEERING FROM CONCENTRATION CAMPS, IMMIGRANT RAIDS AND DEPORTATIONS". Medium. Archived from the original on September 18, 2019. Retrieved September 19, 2019.
62. "76 anti-ICE protesters arrested at Microsoft Store in Manhattan". Windows Central. September 16, 2019. Archived from the original on September 18, 2019. Retrieved September 19, 2019.
63. "Federal agencies continue to advance capabilities with Azure Government". Azure Government. January 24, 2018. Archived from the original on September 19, 2019. Retrieved September 19, 2019.
64. Cox ·, Joseph (26 June 2025). "ICE Is Using a New Facial Recognition App to Identify People, Leaked Emails Show". 404 Media.
65. Kimery, Anthony (17 July 2025). "ICE's facial recognition app raises alarms over expansion of domestic surveillance | Biometric Update". www.biometricupdate.com.
66. Dou, Eva; Galocha, Artur; Schaul, Kevin (January 29, 2026). "The powerful tools in ICE's arsenal to track suspects — and protesters". The Washington Post . Archived from the original on 2026-01-29. Retrieved January 29, 2026.
67. Cox ·, Joseph (2025-11-04). "DHS Gives Local Cops a Facial Recognition App To Find Immigrants". 404 Media. Retrieved 2026-01-12.
68. Maass, Dave (2025-11-26). "Rights Organizations Demand Halt to Mobile Fortify, ICE's Handheld Face Recognition Program". Electronic Frontier Foundation. Retrieved 2026-01-12.
69. "EPIC, Coalition Call on ICE To End Its Use of Facial Recognition in the Field". EPIC - Electronic Privacy Information Center. Retrieved 2026-01-12.
70. Joffe-Block, Jude (2025-11-08). "Immigration agents have new technology to identify and track people". NPR. Retrieved 2026-01-12.
71. Llanos, Jackie (2025-04-21). "Feds blame U.S. citizen for his arrest under suspended immigration law • Florida Phoenix". Florida Phoenix. Retrieved 2026-01-12.
72. Cagle, Marissa Gerchick, Matt (2024-02-07). "When it Comes to Facial Recognition, There is No Such Thing as a Magic Number | ACLU". American Civil Liberties Union. Retrieved 2026-01-12.
73. Belanger, Ashley (2025-10-29). "ICE's forced face scans to verify citizens is unconstitutional, lawmakers say". Ars Technica. Retrieved 2026-01-12.
74. Cox ·, Joseph (2025-10-29). "ICE and CBP Agents Are Scanning Peoples' Faces on the Street To Verify Citizenship". 404 Media. Retrieved 2026-01-12.
75. Cox ·, Joseph (2026-01-19). "ICE's Facial Recognition App Misidentified a Woman. Twice". 404 Media. Retrieved 2026-01-19.
76. "12-03-2025 (Volume 2) M-J-M-A v. Wamsley, et al. FINAL". www.documentcloud.org. Retrieved 2026-01-19.
77. Cox ·, Joseph (2025-10-31). "You Can't Refuse To Be Scanned by ICE's Facial Recognition App, DHS Document Says". 404 Media. Retrieved 2026-01-12.
78. "Facial Comparison Technology | Transportation Security Administration". U.S. Department of Homeland Security Transportation Security Administration. Retrieved 2026-01-12.
79. "Trump Adviser Stephen Miller Holds Six-Figure Investment in Tech Firm Profiting from Deportations". Democracy Now!. Retrieved 2025-09-16.
80. "Damning Report Exposes Stephen Miller's Shady Ties to Palantir". The New Republic. ISSN   0028-6583 . Retrieved June 24, 2025.
81. "Stephen Miller's Financial Stake in ICE Contractor Palantir". POGO. Retrieved 2025-09-16.
82. "Stephen Miller's Financial Stake in ICE Contractor Palantir". POGO. Retrieved June 24, 2025.
83. Hornberger, Peyton. "We're creating AI that could surveil US citizens. And the government is in on it. | Opinion". USA TODAY. Retrieved 2025-09-16.
84. Osborne, James; Chronicle, Houston (2025-08-12). "Ted Cruz's Campaign to Keep Government Out of AI". Industry Insider Texas. Retrieved 2025-09-16.
85. Nazzaro, Miranda (December 4, 2025). "Palantir quietly lands in Education Department through foreign funding portal". FedScoop.
86. Cox, Joseph (January 15, 2026). "'ELITE': The Palantir App ICE Uses to Find Neighborhoods to Raid". 404 Media.
87. Richman, Josh (January 15, 2026). "Report: ICE Using Palantir Tool That Feeds On Medicaid Data". Electronic Frontier Foundation.
88. Franceschi-Bicchierai, Lorenzo (2025-02-04). "Spyware maker Paragon confirms US government is a customer". TechCrunch . Archived from the original on 2025-07-11. Retrieved 2025-09-02.
89. Mazzetti, Mark; Bergman, Ronen; Stevis-Gridneff, Matina (2022-12-08). "How the Global Spyware Industry Spiraled Out of Control". The New York Times . ISSN   0362-4331. Archived from the original on 2 Apr 2024.
90. Srivastava, Mehul; Wiggins, Kaye (2023-05-31). "Cyberweapon manufacturers plot to stay on the right side of US". Financial Times . Archived from the original on 17 Sep 2023.
91. Panagiotopoulos, Vas. "ICE Signs $2 Million Contract With Spyware Maker Paragon Solutions". Wired.com . ISSN   1059-1028. Archived from the original on 22 Nov 2024.
92. House, The White (2023-03-27). "FACT SHEET: President Biden Signs Executive Order to Prohibit U.S. Government Use of Commercial Spyware that Poses Risks to National Security". The White House. Archived from the original on January 21, 2025. Retrieved 2023-12-29.
93. "Executive Order 14093," March 27, 2023, posted March 30, 2023, Federal Register retrieved October 28, 2025
94. Starks, Tim (2023-03-28). "Analysis | Biden's spyware executive order gets mostly good reviews". Washington Post. ISSN   0190-8286. Archived from the original on March 30, 2023. Retrieved 2023-12-29.
95. Fernandez, Katerina: "ICE, Spyware, and the Constitution: A Call for Reform in Immigration Enforcement," January 17, 2025, Immigration and Human Rights Law Review, retrieved October 29, 2025
96. Panagiotopoulos, Vas (Oct 21, 2024). "ICE's $2 Million Contract With a Spyware Vendor Is Under White House Review". Wired.com . ISSN   1059-1028. Archived from the original on 23 Mar 2025.
97. "Ice obtains access to Israeli-made spyware that can hack phones and encrypted apps,", September 2, 2025, The Guardian, retrieved October 28, 2025
98. "Trump goes on spyware purchasing blitz to help ICE find people who they claim want to ‘overthrow of the United States Government’," October 17, 2025, The Independent retrieved October 29, 2025
99. Kirchgaessner, Stephanie (2025-09-02). "Ice obtains access to Israeli-made spyware that can hack phones and encrypted apps". The Guardian . Archived from the original on 2025-09-02. Retrieved 2025-09-02.
100. "ICE amps up its surveillance powers, targeting immigrants and Antifa," ^{[ dead link ]} October 17, 2025, Boston Globe, retrieved October 28, 2025; also at Washington Post at: "ICE amps up its surveillance powers..."
101. "'We need to watch out': Maddow sounds alarm on ICE surveillance as Trump wields new weapon," October 28, 2025, Rachel Maddow Show, MSNBC, retrieved October 28, 2025
102. Snapes, Laura (9 January 2026). "Spotify no longer running ICE recruitment ads, after US government campaign ends". The Guardian . Archived from the original on 10 January 2026. Retrieved 29 January 2026.
103. Mier, Tomás (November 11, 2025). "ICE Ads Are All Over Your Favorite Streaming Services". Rolling Stone . Archived from the original on 3 January 2026. Retrieved 29 January 2026.
104. Horowitz, Steven J.; Aswad, Jem (8 January 2026). "Spotify Confirms ICE Recruitment Ads Are No Longer Running on Platform". Variety . Retrieved 29 January 2026.