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A new investigation reveals the immigration agency has collected data on most Americans. Its the latest case in a worrying trend.

By Farrah Hassen / OtherWords

Growing up in the Southern California suburbs, government surveillance never worried me. But my Syrian-American parents were more cautious. They would often warn me against talking about politics over the phone in case Big Brother was snooping.

As a teenager, I dismissed their concerns. Listen, were not in the Middle East, I would counter.

My parents knew better though. I soon received a rude awakening in the aftermath of the September 11 attacks.

Almost 1,200 people, mostly Muslims, wererounded upand detained after the attacks, often for months without charges. Arabs and South Asians wereracially profiledand deported for minor immigration violations. The FBI begansurveillingmosques across America.

As part of the homeland security reforms following 9/11, Congress created the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency in 2003 to ostensibly fight terrorism and enforce immigration law. But the truth is, ICE went on to use its newly established authority to spy on nearly everyone in the United States.

An independent, two-year investigation has now revealed that ICE collected data onhundreds of millions of Americansunder a legally and ethically questionable surveillance system largely outside of public oversight.

Georgetown Laws Center on Privacy and Technologyuncovered this dragnet after filing over 200 Freedom of Information Act requests and reviewing ICEs contracting records from 2008 to 2021.

In itsreport, released May 10, the Center found that ICE has spied onmost Americanswithout a warrant and circumvented many state privacy laws, such as those in California. The authors conclude: ICE now operates as a domestic surveillance agency.

ICE hascarried out this surveillanceby turning to third parties like state Departments of Motor Vehicles, large utility companies, and private data brokers like LexisNexis Risk Solutions.

From these sources, ICE gained access todrivers license datafor 3 in 4 adults living in the United States, and scanned a third of the license photos withfacial recognitiontechnology. ICE is also able to view over 218 millionutility customers recordsacross the country, including for over half of Californias residents.

This surveillance network has unsurprisingly hit immigrant communities hardest. The agency has targeted immigrants for deportation by cruelly exploiting their trust in public institutions, such as when undocumented people apply for adrivers licenseor sign up for essentialutilitieslike water and electricity.

These practices point to an agency that has clearly overstepped its boundaries. ICE does not have the congressional authority to do this kind of bulk data collection on the public. This overreach underscores the need to shift U.S. immigration law away from the deportation-driven status quo.

Unfortunately, this ICE program isnt an isolated case. Its part of a broader domestic surveillance apparatus that spans decades and multiple federal agencies including theFBI, CIA, and NSA and ultimately impacts all of us.

During the 1960s and 70s,federal agencies spied on anti-Vietnam War protesters and civil rights leaders. More recently, in 2013 whistleblower Edward Snowden revealed that the National Security Agency created a massive surveillance program thatsecretly gathered telephone recordson millions of Americans, regardless of whether they were suspected of any wrongdoing.

And this February, newly declassifieddocumentsexposed the CIAs ownsecret bulk data collection programto spy on Americans. The type of data remains classified, but Senators Ron Wyden (D-OR) and Martin Heinrich (D-NM) havecalledfor greater transparency on the agencys surveillance of Americans.

We should all be alarmed by this growing domestic surveillance state. Left unchecked, it corrodes public trust in our democratic institutions and undermines our civil liberties, most notably the embattled right to privacy.

The history of government surveillance demonstrates that we can never take this right for granted.

Farrah Hassen, J.D., is a writer, policy analyst, and adjunct professor in the Department of Political Science at Cal Poly Pomona.

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ICE Probably Spied on You - Scheerpost.com

Lucknow: TheYogi Adityanath government in Uttar Pradesh has decided to take action on illegal parking stands. CM Yogi Adityanath has ordered the removal of all illegal parking stands from the entire state in 48 hours during a review meeting on road safety. At the same time, CM Yogi has also ordered to put gangsters on the operator who did not remove the illegal parking stand and confiscate the property. CM Yogi Adityanath made it clear that roadside restaurantson the highway without parking will also have to be closed.

CM Yogi ordered to earmark the location for street vendors so that there are no shops on the roads. He said speed breakers should not be made 'waist breakers'. Wherever standard reverse speed breakers have been made in the state, they should be removed. CM Yogi said that 'waist breaker' speed breakers can be fatal for sick people and pregnant women. Only tabletop speed breakers should be made. He said that do not let anyone of mafia tendency get involved with any contract-lease. If a single mafia joins, his entire gang will create a base of illegal activities.

In a stern tone, CM Yogi said that breaks the back of every mafia. He said to remove illegal roadside restaurants with inadequate parking from the roadside. The roads connected to highways, expressways, PWD, urban development or any other department should also eliminate illegal encroachments.

Ajay Kothiyal, CM face of AAP in Uttarakhand, resigned from the party

Congress to now preparing for new 'camp' after Chintan Shivir, will brainstorm again in June

Farmers movement started on Mohali-Chandigarh border, Bhagwant Mann arrived to talk.

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NSA to be imposed on those who do not remove illegal parking stands, property will be confiscated - News Track English

Lucknow: Tension prevailed in the area after beef was allegedly found in a cowshed in Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh. The Bithoor police, who reached the cowshed located in Bani village of Chaubepur block of Kanpur, came to know about the matter and started investigation. Meat was found in a sack in the room built inside the cowshed. Some remains were found in the drain. After getting the information, the Commissioner of Police, who reached the spot, said that the accused have been identified. Action will be taken against them under NSA.

According to the information, when the laborers digging the pond near the cowshed in Bithoor Kanpur, after the information went inside the cowshed, two unknown persons started running away from there. Both of them left the bike inside the cowshed in a hurry. After the meat was found in the cowshed, the villagers informed the Bithoor police about it. As soon as the information was received, the Bithoor police reached the spot and started investigation. The team of doctors reached the spot and sent the meat sample for examination and the remains were buried by digging a pit.

Bajrang Dal's district coordinator Naresh Tomar said that complaints of such incidents were being received for a long time. Today we have come here on the information of such incident and we demand strict action from the police against the accused. Police Commissioner Vijay Singh Meena, who reached the spot, said that we had got information about beef being found inside the cowshed. The two accused fled from the spot after seeing the villagers. Both have been identified. Meat sample has been taken for testing. NSA will be imposed against the accused, strict action will be taken against them.

Hackers blew three and a half lakh rupees from the bank account of the female judge of the sessions court

4 days after killing the married girlfriend, the lover committed suicide by jumping in front of the train

The bride who went to the parlor for make-up did not return..., the barati kept dancing at the door and then..."

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Cow slaughter stirred up in Kanpur, police took meat sample... NSA will be imposed on the accused - News Track English

Former National Security Adviser John Hannah argues Ukraine is going to be 'extremely dependent' on massive quantities of Russian arms.

During his appearance on "Cavuto: Coast to Coast" Monday, former National Security Adviser John Hannah discussed the ongoing invasion into Ukraine as the West secures weapons for the country amid its war with Russia, arguing Ukraine is the subject of a "massive war we haven't seen the likes of since WWII."

JOHN HANNAH: Ukraine is, you know, the subject of a massive war that we haven't seen anything the likes of since World War II. Russian territory and Russian economic targets are kind of off-limits to the Ukrainians. So this is not really a fair fight

IMAGES SHOW UKRAINIAN TROOPS FIGHTING BACK AGAINST RUSSIA AS BATTLE SHIFTS EAST

Former National Security Adviser to V.P. Cheney discusses foreign affairs on "Cavuto: Coast to Coast" on April 11, 2022. (Fox News)

Ukraine is going to be extremely dependent on both massive, massive quantities of Russian arms, especially with this new offensive coming in the east and the south, and undoubtedly on massive western international financial and economic assistance to keep them fighting another day to ensure that Putin can't achieve his strategic objectives here. It's going to be very, very costly bill for the West and for the United States.

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Former National Security Adviser to V.P. Cheney John Hannah discusses China reportedly expanding its nuclear war chest, Russia's new commander, Biden's meeting with Indian PM Modi and the ongoing war in Ukraine.

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Ukraine the subject of 'massive war' we havent seen the likes of since WWII: Former NSA - Fox Business

Washington, Apr 10 (PTI) The US is taking aggressive action to help the Ukrainians succeed on the battlefield and help them have the best possible position at the negotiating table, a top White House national security official said on Sunday.

Speaking to CNN, US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said the US will play a key role in supporting Ukraine against Russia after Moscow attacked its neighbour.

We are taking aggressive action in an effort to both help the Ukrainians succeed on the battlefield and help the Ukrainians have the best possible position at the negotiating table, Sullivan said.

We will continue to do that. We will continue to rally the world in that regard. And the United States will play the key role it has played thus far in the days and weeks ahead, he added.

Referring to the appointment of General Aleksandr Dvornikov as new Russian commander in Ukraine, the US National Security Advisor said that no appointment of any general can erase the fact that Russia has already faced a strategic failure in Ukraine.

They thought that they were going to be able to conquer the capital city and take other major cities with little resistance, that theyd, in fact, be welcomed with open arms. And what we have learned in the first several weeks of this war is that Ukraine will never be subjugated to Russia. It doesnt matter which general President Putin tries to appoint, he said.

Sullivan alleged that the new general has a resume that includes brutality against civilians in other theaters, in Syria.

We can expect more of the same in this theater. But its not something that we need to anticipate looking forward to. As we have already seen it, and we can expect more of it, he alleged.

This general will just be another author of crimes and brutality against Ukrainian civilians. And the United States is determined to do all that we can to support the Ukrainians as they resist him and they resist the forces that he commands, Sullivan said.

President Joe Biden, he said, has been absolutely clear from before this conflict began that the United States is prepared to work with its allies to defend every inch of NATO territory.

That means every inch, including if mines showed up in a Romanian harbour or a Turkish harbour and caused damage or loss of life, he said.

In another interview to ABC News, Sullivan said the images that are being seen out of Bucha and other cities have been tragic, theyve been horrifying, theyve been downright shocking, but they have not been surprising.

We, in fact, before the war began, declassified intelligence and presented it indicating that there was a plan from the highest levels of the Russian government to target civilians who oppose the invasion, to cause violence against them, to organise efforts to brutalise them in order to try to terrorise the population and subjugate it. So this is something that was planned, he said.

Now in addition to that, I think there certainly are cases where individual soldiers or individual units got frustrated because the Ukrainians were beating them back. They had been told they were going to have a glorious victory and just ride into Kyiv without any opposition with the Ukrainians welcoming them. And when that didnt happen, I do think some of these units engaged in these acts of brutality, these atrocities, these war crimes even without direction from above, he said.

Responding to a question on ABC News, Sullivan said that the United States has not reached a determination on genocide.

We havent yet reached a determination on genocide. That is a determination that we work through systematically. There is a unit at the State Department that gathers evidence and then makes a legal analysis because genocide is actually a legal determination, he said.

But lets set legalities aside for a minute. I think we can all say that these are mass atrocities. These are war crimes. These are shocking and brutal acts that are completely unacceptable, beyond the pale for the international community. So whatever label one wants to affix to them, the bottom line is this, there must be accountability. And the United States will work with the international community to make sure theres accountability, he said. PTI LKJ RUP RUP RUP

This report is auto-generated from PTI news service. ThePrint holds no responsibility for its content.

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US taking 'aggressive action' to help Ukrainians succeed on the battlefield: NSA Sullivan - ThePrint