Ban ICE From Using Spyware Now

Stop ICE From Using Invasive Spyware I am writing with urgency about Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) renewed use of Graphite spyware, a powerful tool developed by an overseas company. This technology can infiltrate smartphones, bypass encryption, intercept private communications, and activate microphones without a user’s knowledge. Its use inside the United States represents a grave threat to privacy and due process. Expose The Danger of Graphite Contracts ICE has quietly reactivated a multi-million dollar contract that had been suspended under a prior executive order meant to safeguard national security and civil rights. By lifting those protections, the government has given ICE access to one of the most intrusive surveillance tools available, creating risks of abuse far beyond legitimate law enforcement needs. Confront Civil Liberties Violations Graphite gives agencies unrestricted access to communications, movements, and private spaces. Unlike court-approved searches, spyware captures everything at once, placing entire lives under surveillance. Civil liberties leaders warn this threatens free speech and dissent, while independent experts caution that such tools were designed for authoritarian regimes, not open democracies. ICE’s own record of overreach only deepens these concerns. Enact Strong Congressional Safeguards Congress must act immediately to prevent abuse. I urge you to support legislation that will: 1. Ban the domestic use of spyware tools such as Graphite and Pegasus-style programs. 2. Mandate transparency whenever agencies initiate or renew spyware contracts. 3. Require strict judicial oversight so deployment is limited to court-approved cases backed by probable cause. 4. Create an independent review board to audit spyware use and enforce compliance. 5. Protect journalists, attorneys, and advocates, whose confidential work is most vulnerable. Defend Democracy Against Surveillance Overreach Unchecked spyware undermines the freedoms our democracy depends on. Citizens must be able to speak, organize, and dissent without fear of secret surveillance. I urge you to lead in advancing bipartisan legislation that ensures security never comes at the cost of liberty.