1. United States
2. Md.
3. Letter

I am writing to urge you to introduce or support legislation that prohibits Immigration and Customs Enforcement from using invasive surveillance technologies that violate the privacy and civil liberties of everyone in our communities. ICE currently deploys facial recognition tools like the Mobile Fortify app, purchases location data from commercial brokers, and uses specialized area monitoring systems capable of tracking phones across entire neighborhoods over time. These technologies can follow someone from a public space directly to their home or workplace. The agency has also obtained geofence warrants that sweep up data about every device in a location during a specific time window, ensnaring countless people who have no connection to any investigation. This surveillance infrastructure affects all of us, not just immigrants. When ICE purchases location data from brokers or uses facial recognition on bystander video, they are building dossiers on American citizens exercising their First Amendment rights to document law enforcement activity. The Federal Trade Commission has already penalized firms for unlawfully selling sensitive location information, yet ICE continues purchasing this data. National Institute of Standards and Technology testing shows facial recognition technology has lower accuracy for people with darker skin, meaning misidentification risk falls disproportionately on communities of color. The January 7, 2026 shooting death of Renee Nicole Good by an ICE agent in south Minneapolis demonstrates why public documentation of law enforcement remains essential. Cellphone footage contradicted official statements. Yet people who film ICE operations now face retaliation and digital exposure through the very technologies ICE deploys. The U.S. Press Freedom Tracker documented multiple incidents in Illinois in late 2025 where journalists covering ICE facility protests were shot with crowd control munitions or arrested while filming. I ask you to prohibit ICE from using facial recognition technology, purchasing location data from commercial brokers, deploying area monitoring tools, and obtaining geofence warrants. These practices constitute warrantless mass surveillance that has no place in a democracy. Our communities deserve protection from agencies that treat constitutional rights as obstacles rather than guardrails.