Investigate ICE's Evasive Answers on Paragon Spyware Contract

Congress needs to investigate DHS and ICE's contradictory statements about their use of commercial spyware. ICE reactivated a contract with Paragon Solutions — maker of the Graphite spyware tool — in August 2024, yet DHS now claims ICE has "no current contract or relationship" with Paragon. That's not a clean answer. It's a dodge. The evasion gets worse. ICE's departing acting Director Todd Lyons confirmed in an April 1 letter that he personally approved HSI agents to use commercial spyware, but DHS refuses to say whether that tool is Paragon's Graphite or something else. Graphite can silently infiltrate devices and read encrypted messages without a single click — it was used to target journalists and activists in Italy. When asked whether ICE still accesses Paragon-developed tools through a third party, DHS went silent. That silence is not acceptable when a 2023 executive order explicitly bars federal agencies from purchasing spyware that poses security risks. Privacy organizations are already suing under FOIA to get the contract records. Congress shouldn't be waiting on a lawsuit to do its job. Hold hearings, compel full disclosure of ICE's current surveillance contracts, and demand straight answers about whether the 2023 executive order is being honored or quietly circumvented.