- ICE has requested numerous social media platforms to hand over data on users who are critical of its agents and operations
- Tech companies have complied, but are now expecting Democrat-led investigations into their compliance following the midterm elections
- Executives want to shield themselves from Congressional inquiries into their conduct
The US midterm elections are just days away, and big tech companies such as Google and Meta are already quietly defying Trump’s orders to hand over data on users who have criticized his stance on immigration.
The incumbent party usually loses seats in the midterm elections, and with a wave of Democratic governors potentially on the horizon tech companies are attempting to stave off future scrutiny.
“They need to be prepared to say, under oath, why they did what they did,” Rep. Shri Thanedar (D., Mich.) said, referring to an investigation into companies who have complied with Trump administration subpoenas.
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T&C update: your data may be handed to the authorities
Numerous tech companies with platforms upon which people have voiced critical views of Trump’s handling of immigration policy have begun updating their terms of use to include transparency on how user data could be handed over to the authorities.
Much of the criticism has centered around how Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) have conducted operations investigating illegal immigrants.
As a recent Department of Homeland Security breach exposed, ICE agents have conducted undercover surveillance operations of protestors, critics, and journalists using wiretaps.
The DHS has also expanded its definition of doxing – the revealing of personal information such as a home address for malicious purposes – to include names and titles. Social media platforms and search engines such as Google, Facebook, Instagram, Reddit, TikTok and X have then been scoured by ICE to identify anything it deems a threat to its agents or operations.
Many of these platforms have been handed administrative subpoenas that do not require approval from a judge. Citizen journalists with channels on YouTube have also been targeted by ICE, with requests to hand over customers’ personal information.
“Violence, threats, and conspiracies to impede law enforcement operations are not protected by the First Amendment,” said White House spokeswoman Lauren Bis.
People familiar with the matter told the Wall Street Journal that the DHS has increased the number of grand jury subpoenas submitted to platforms that handle user data, which carry heavy consequences for noncompliance.
In order to prepare for potential Democrat inquiries into how tech companies have conducted themselves in line with such subpoenas, some companies have delayed or pushed back on some requests to help insulate themselves from investigations.
A letter from Sen. Ron Wyden (D., Ore.) and Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D., Wash.) to the chief justice of the Supreme Court and the acting head of the Government Accountability Office accused ICE of using subpoenas to “surveil, intimidate, and suppress the free speech of ordinary citizens and even the free press.”
An ICE spokesperson told the WSJ that all of its operations are “conducted in accordance with applicable law and policy.”
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benedict.collins@futurenet.com (Benedict Collins)
