How will a multi-million dollar contract change the rules of customs control?
LexisNexis, an American company, has signed a multi-million dollar contract for the supply of surveillance and monitoring equipment with the US Border and Customs Service (USCBP). This became known from documents obtained by the human rights organization Just Futures Law on request under the Freedom of Information Act.
According to human rights activists, LexisNexis began cooperating with USCBP in December 2022. The contract amount was $ 15.9 million at the first stage, but it is expected to increase in the future.
Under the agreement, the company provides the border guard service with broad access to various databases of personal data of American citizens, both confidential and publicly available.
With the help of facial recognition systems, border guards can instantly check basic data about a person, as well as find out if they have been convicted and can break the law again. USCBP employees also gained access to mobile phone geolocations, biometrics databases, and a social media activity monitoring system.
This information can be visualized on Google Maps and used to identify connections between people and organizations.
According to experts, such technologies actually give government agencies the opportunity to spy on the country's population, bypassing the procedures provided for by the US Constitution and laws.
"This is basically mass surveillance on steroids," said Julie Mao of Just Futures Law.
Representatives of the USCBP declined to comment on the contract. LexisNexis also ignores questions from journalists. However, the company has previously denied transferring facial recognition and geolocation technologies to border guards.
According to media reports, LexisNexis can act as an intermediary, reselling products produced by third-party firms. For example, LexisNexis tools use the infamous Babel X software to monitor social networks. Similar Babel X services were previously purchased by the FBI and the US Immigration Service.
In recent years, the Border and Customs Service has been regularly criticized by human rights defenders for numerous human rights violations. In 2020, the organization used drones to monitor protesters in Minneapolis after the murder of George Floyd. Also, USCBP agents detained participants of protest actions in Portland without permission from local authorities. Then the public condemned the service for abuse of office.
Just Futures Law has already filed a lawsuit against LexisNexis, accusing the company of illegally collecting and using personal data of Americans. Activists demand to ban such practices and protect the constitutional rights of citizens to privacy.
LexisNexis, an American company, has signed a multi-million dollar contract for the supply of surveillance and monitoring equipment with the US Border and Customs Service (USCBP). This became known from documents obtained by the human rights organization Just Futures Law on request under the Freedom of Information Act.
According to human rights activists, LexisNexis began cooperating with USCBP in December 2022. The contract amount was $ 15.9 million at the first stage, but it is expected to increase in the future.
Under the agreement, the company provides the border guard service with broad access to various databases of personal data of American citizens, both confidential and publicly available.
With the help of facial recognition systems, border guards can instantly check basic data about a person, as well as find out if they have been convicted and can break the law again. USCBP employees also gained access to mobile phone geolocations, biometrics databases, and a social media activity monitoring system.
This information can be visualized on Google Maps and used to identify connections between people and organizations.
According to experts, such technologies actually give government agencies the opportunity to spy on the country's population, bypassing the procedures provided for by the US Constitution and laws.
"This is basically mass surveillance on steroids," said Julie Mao of Just Futures Law.
Representatives of the USCBP declined to comment on the contract. LexisNexis also ignores questions from journalists. However, the company has previously denied transferring facial recognition and geolocation technologies to border guards.
According to media reports, LexisNexis can act as an intermediary, reselling products produced by third-party firms. For example, LexisNexis tools use the infamous Babel X software to monitor social networks. Similar Babel X services were previously purchased by the FBI and the US Immigration Service.
In recent years, the Border and Customs Service has been regularly criticized by human rights defenders for numerous human rights violations. In 2020, the organization used drones to monitor protesters in Minneapolis after the murder of George Floyd. Also, USCBP agents detained participants of protest actions in Portland without permission from local authorities. Then the public condemned the service for abuse of office.
Just Futures Law has already filed a lawsuit against LexisNexis, accusing the company of illegally collecting and using personal data of Americans. Activists demand to ban such practices and protect the constitutional rights of citizens to privacy.
