Privacy

40 posts
How a US Citizen Was Scanned With ICE's Facial Recognition Tech
ICE

How a US Citizen Was Scanned With ICE's Facial Recognition Tech

Jesus Gutiérrez told immigration agents he was a U.S. citizen. Only after they scanned his face, did the agents let him go.
Man Charged for Wiping Phone Before CBP Could Search It
CBP

Man Charged for Wiping Phone Before CBP Could Search It

The exact circumstances around the search are not known. But activist Samuel Tunick is charged with deleting data from a Google Pixel before CBP’s Tactical Terrorism Response Team could search it.
DHS’s Immigrant-Hunting App Removed from Google Play Store
ICE

DHS’s Immigrant-Hunting App Removed from Google Play Store

The app, called Mobile Identify, was launched in November, and lets local cops use facial recognition to hunt immigrants on behalf of ICE. It is unclear if the removal is temporary or not.
IRS Accessed Massive Database of Americans Flights Without a Warrant
arc

IRS Accessed Massive Database of Americans Flights Without a Warrant

A bipartisan letter reveals the IRS searched a database of hundreds of millions of travel records without first conducting a legal review. Airlines like Delta, United, American, and Southwest are selling these records to the government through a co-owned data broker.
This App Lets ICE Track Vehicles and Owners Across the Country
ICE

This App Lets ICE Track Vehicles and Owners Across the Country

Material viewed by 404 Media shows data giant Thomson Reuters enriches license plate data with marriage, voter, and ownership records. The tool can predict where a car may be in the future.
How to Opt-Out of Airlines Selling Your Travel Data to the Government
Privacy

How to Opt-Out of Airlines Selling Your Travel Data to the Government

The Airlines Reporting Corporation (ARC), owned by major U.S. airlines, collects billions of ticketing records and sells them to the government to be searched without a warrant. I managed to opt-out of that data selling.
ICE and CBP Agents Are Scanning Peoples’ Faces on the Street To Verify Citizenship
ICE

ICE and CBP Agents Are Scanning Peoples’ Faces on the Street To Verify Citizenship

Videos on social media show officers from ICE and CBP using facial recognition technology on people in the field. One expert described the practice as “pure dystopian creep.”
A $60 Mod to Meta’s Ray-Bans Disables Its Privacy-Protecting Recording Light
Privacy

A $60 Mod to Meta’s Ray-Bans Disables Its Privacy-Protecting Recording Light

Meta’s Ray-Ban glasses usually include an LED that lights up when the user is recording other people. One hobbyist is charging a small fee to disable that light, and has a growing list of customers around the country.
License Plate Reader Company Flock Is Building a Massive People Lookup Tool, Leak Shows
News

License Plate Reader Company Flock Is Building a Massive People Lookup Tool, Leak Shows

Flock, which has license plate readers (LPRs) all around the country, wants police to be able to “jump from LPR to person,” according to leaked audio obtained by 404 Media.
Why Is a Government Contractor Trying to Buy iPhone Hacking Tech From Us?
News

Why Is a Government Contractor Trying to Buy iPhone Hacking Tech From Us?

A contractor for the Air Force and other government agencies wanted to get a good deal on some Graykeys from us (we're journalists FYI).
Cloudflare Issue Can Leak Chat App Users' Broad Location
News

Cloudflare Issue Can Leak Chat App Users' Broad Location

A security researcher made a tool that let them quickly check which of Cloudflare's data centers had cached an image, which allowed them to figure out what city a Discord, Signal, or Twitter/X user might be in.
The Powerful AI Tool That Cops (or Stalkers) Can Use to Geolocate Photos in Seconds
News

The Powerful AI Tool That Cops (or Stalkers) Can Use to Geolocate Photos in Seconds

For months members of the public have been using GeoSpy, a tool trained on millions of images that can find the location a photo was taken based on soil, architecture, and more. It's GeoGuesser at scale.