Ben West 🦋
@benwest.bsky.social
"Seasoned" campaigner & aspiring computer whisperer.
Anxious dog person.
Rewiring broken systems. https://BenWest.blog
Climate solutions, democratization, infosec and anti-surveillance advocate.
He/They
🍉
📍Huron-Wendat and Anishinaabek Territory
Anxious dog person.
Rewiring broken systems. https://BenWest.blog
Climate solutions, democratization, infosec and anti-surveillance advocate.
He/They
🍉
📍Huron-Wendat and Anishinaabek Territory
Pinned
Ben West 🦋
@benwest.bsky.social
· Dec 22
Reposted by Ben West 🦋
A manual for ICE's immigrant-targeting computer system, Palantir ELITE, was leaked today.
Let's look at it, then step back to evaluate how far we've come along a dangerous road and where that road might take us. 🧵
Let's look at it, then step back to evaluate how far we've come along a dangerous road and where that road might take us. 🧵
Here is the User Guide for ELITE, the Tool Palantir Made for ICE
404 Media is publishing a version of the user guide for ELITE, which lets ICE bring up dossiers on individual people and provides a “confidence score” of their address.
www.404media.co
January 31, 2026 at 3:37 AM
A manual for ICE's immigrant-targeting computer system, Palantir ELITE, was leaked today.
Let's look at it, then step back to evaluate how far we've come along a dangerous road and where that road might take us. 🧵
Let's look at it, then step back to evaluate how far we've come along a dangerous road and where that road might take us. 🧵
Reposted by Ben West 🦋
“I’m not aware of something like this happening ever before.” FBI’s Search of Georgia Election Center Is “Dangerous,” Experts Warn, by @dougbockclark.bsky.social @jenafifield.bsky.social
FBI’s Search of Georgia Election Center Is “Dangerous,” Experts Warn
The search warrant, which sought 2020 election ballots, tabulator tapes, digital data and voter rolls from Fulton County, marked what experts described as a significant escalation in President Donald ...
www.propublica.org
January 29, 2026 at 1:34 PM
“I’m not aware of something like this happening ever before.” FBI’s Search of Georgia Election Center Is “Dangerous,” Experts Warn, by @dougbockclark.bsky.social @jenafifield.bsky.social
Fuck Flock and all of their investors like A16z.
Did you know they are saying 2026 will be the year of privacy while they fund surveillance tech?
a16zcrypto.com/posts/articl...
Police Told to Be ‘as Vague as Permissible’ About Why They Use Flock @404media.co www.404media.co/police-told-...
Did you know they are saying 2026 will be the year of privacy while they fund surveillance tech?
a16zcrypto.com/posts/articl...
Police Told to Be ‘as Vague as Permissible’ About Why They Use Flock @404media.co www.404media.co/police-told-...
Police Told to Be ‘as Vague as Permissible’ About Why They Use Flock
The documents show law enforcement sees themselves as being consistently and universally under threat from the people it is supposed to protect.
www.404media.co
January 29, 2026 at 7:01 PM
Fuck Flock and all of their investors like A16z.
Did you know they are saying 2026 will be the year of privacy while they fund surveillance tech?
a16zcrypto.com/posts/articl...
Police Told to Be ‘as Vague as Permissible’ About Why They Use Flock @404media.co www.404media.co/police-told-...
Did you know they are saying 2026 will be the year of privacy while they fund surveillance tech?
a16zcrypto.com/posts/articl...
Police Told to Be ‘as Vague as Permissible’ About Why They Use Flock @404media.co www.404media.co/police-told-...
Reposted by Ben West 🦋
1. ICE is using Palantir apps to collect biometric data on protestors. I'm working closely with @markey.senate.gov to stop this.
Wyden, Merkley and Markey Demand ICE Stop Using Mobile Facial Recognition App | U.S. Senator Ron Wyden of Oregon
The Official U.S. Senate website of Senator Ron Wyden of Oregon
www.wyden.senate.gov
January 27, 2026 at 9:28 PM
1. ICE is using Palantir apps to collect biometric data on protestors. I'm working closely with @markey.senate.gov to stop this.
Reposted by Ben West 🦋
We need depositions, documents, and public testimony to establish why and how the most prominent and powerful figures in the trump administration publicly and repeatedly lied about someone their goons killed.
The writing and editing of allegedly inaccurate talking points used to discuss the Benghazi attack on the Sunday shows were the subject of YEARS of congressional hearings. www.axios.com/2026/01/27/t...
January 27, 2026 at 8:58 PM
We need depositions, documents, and public testimony to establish why and how the most prominent and powerful figures in the trump administration publicly and repeatedly lied about someone their goons killed.
Reposted by Ben West 🦋
DHS Secretary Kristi Noem and the Trump administration have been clear that, to them, the problem isn’t ICE agents running amok in American cities; it’s the people documenting ICE activities and posting to social media. But doing so—even anonymously—is protected by law, writes CDT's Kate Ruane.
Americans Have the Right to Be Anonymous Online
Kate Ruane is the Director of Center for Democracy & Technology's Free Expression Project.
www.techpolicy.press
January 27, 2026 at 1:45 PM
DHS Secretary Kristi Noem and the Trump administration have been clear that, to them, the problem isn’t ICE agents running amok in American cities; it’s the people documenting ICE activities and posting to social media. But doing so—even anonymously—is protected by law, writes CDT's Kate Ruane.
Reposted by Ben West 🦋
They spelled “permanently abolish ICE, and impeach and charge Noem, Bondi, Miller, Vance and Trump” wrong.
Abolishing ICE is essential but isn’t enough. Everyone who empowered them needs to be held accountable for their crimes.
Abolishing ICE is essential but isn’t enough. Everyone who empowered them needs to be held accountable for their crimes.
A pause in ICE activity in Minnesota is not debatable after the fatal shooting of 37-year-old Alex Jeffrey Pretti Saturday morning in south Minneapolis, writes the Star Tribune Editorial Board.
Editorial | An ICE pause is the only path to peace
A pause in ICE activity in Minnesota is not debatable after the fatal shooting of 37-year-old Alex Jeffrey Pretti Saturday morning in south Minneapolis, writes the Star Tribune Editorial Board.
bit.ly
January 25, 2026 at 3:40 AM
They spelled “permanently abolish ICE, and impeach and charge Noem, Bondi, Miller, Vance and Trump” wrong.
Abolishing ICE is essential but isn’t enough. Everyone who empowered them needs to be held accountable for their crimes.
Abolishing ICE is essential but isn’t enough. Everyone who empowered them needs to be held accountable for their crimes.
Reposted by Ben West 🦋
The HaveIBeenFlocked.com database is a tiny fraction of Flock Safety queries that have been leaked or released via FOIA requests. You can be tracked for attending a protest, lawfully getting an abortion, or because a random account said something about you on social media.
January 13, 2026 at 8:18 PM
The HaveIBeenFlocked.com database is a tiny fraction of Flock Safety queries that have been leaked or released via FOIA requests. You can be tracked for attending a protest, lawfully getting an abortion, or because a random account said something about you on social media.
Reposted by Ben West 🦋
Here is a (likely incomplete) list of apps that are enabling ICE to track your smartphone's location.
Download, mirror, and reshare.
docs.google.com/spreadsheets...
Download, mirror, and reshare.
docs.google.com/spreadsheets...
Gravy-Venntel_apps
docs.google.com
January 9, 2026 at 6:44 PM
Here is a (likely incomplete) list of apps that are enabling ICE to track your smartphone's location.
Download, mirror, and reshare.
docs.google.com/spreadsheets...
Download, mirror, and reshare.
docs.google.com/spreadsheets...
Hey @bennjordan.bsky.social I can only assume you saw this news and you already are digging deeper into it. youtu.be/AyHq3zgDBlM?...
I've been interested in your videos about LRADs and sound weapons.
The Havanna Syndrome has generally been considered tinfoil hat stuff. Curious what you think.
I've been interested in your videos about LRADs and sound weapons.
The Havanna Syndrome has generally been considered tinfoil hat stuff. Curious what you think.
U.S. government obtains device possibly tied to mysterious "Havana Syndrome"
YouTube video by CBS News
youtu.be
January 23, 2026 at 3:22 PM
Hey @bennjordan.bsky.social I can only assume you saw this news and you already are digging deeper into it. youtu.be/AyHq3zgDBlM?...
I've been interested in your videos about LRADs and sound weapons.
The Havanna Syndrome has generally been considered tinfoil hat stuff. Curious what you think.
I've been interested in your videos about LRADs and sound weapons.
The Havanna Syndrome has generally been considered tinfoil hat stuff. Curious what you think.
Reposted by Ben West 🦋
LNG Canada has known there was an issue with its flaring equipment for over a year. While locals raised concerns about noise, smoke and emissions, until now, they didn’t have answers. The Narwhal reviewed more than 2,000 pages of documents for this story: thenarwhal.ca/lng-canada-f... #bcpoli
Equipment issue led to excessive LNG Canada flaring, docs reveal | The Narwhal
LNG Canada delayed reporting ‘integrity issue’ to regulators and never fully informed the public, while locals raised concerns about noise, smoke and emissions
thenarwhal.ca
January 21, 2026 at 1:46 PM
LNG Canada has known there was an issue with its flaring equipment for over a year. While locals raised concerns about noise, smoke and emissions, until now, they didn’t have answers. The Narwhal reviewed more than 2,000 pages of documents for this story: thenarwhal.ca/lng-canada-f... #bcpoli
Reposted by Ben West 🦋
Deportations in Canada reach highest rates since Stephen Harper, spending on removals up 50% since 2019. This is a conservative, anti migrant government. www.thestar.com/news/canada/...
Canada spent $78 million deporting 18,000 people in 2024 — the most since Stephen Harper
The vast majority of those deported have been asylum seekers whose refugee claims have been rejected, according to data obtained by the Star from the Canada Border Services Agency.
www.thestar.com
December 23, 2025 at 2:58 AM
Deportations in Canada reach highest rates since Stephen Harper, spending on removals up 50% since 2019. This is a conservative, anti migrant government. www.thestar.com/news/canada/...
Reposted by Ben West 🦋
As governor of the Bank of England, Mark Carney blocked Venezuela from accessing $1 billion of its own gold after coordinated pressure from Washington and the far-right Venezuelan opposition, directly aiding a US-led regime change effort and worsening a humanitarian crisis.
Mark Carney’s silence on Venezuela reveals complicity
On September 2, the US military bombed a boat in the Caribbean, killing 11 civilians. Regional leaders denounced the attack as murder, but Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney remained silent. His stan...
canadiandimension.com
January 3, 2026 at 7:52 PM
As governor of the Bank of England, Mark Carney blocked Venezuela from accessing $1 billion of its own gold after coordinated pressure from Washington and the far-right Venezuelan opposition, directly aiding a US-led regime change effort and worsening a humanitarian crisis.
Reposted by Ben West 🦋
"Strangest of all is the liberal pipe dream that local police will stand up against ICE and CBP, when police have collaborated with ICE and been deployed to protect agents from protesters, even in so-called sanctuary cities."
An interview with Robin D.G. Kelley
www.bostonreview.net/articles/ren...
An interview with Robin D.G. Kelley
www.bostonreview.net/articles/ren...
Renee Good's Murder and Other Acts of Terror
An interview with Robin D. G. Kelley on how to think about ICE—and the broader history of police violence.
www.bostonreview.net
January 17, 2026 at 4:30 PM
"Strangest of all is the liberal pipe dream that local police will stand up against ICE and CBP, when police have collaborated with ICE and been deployed to protect agents from protesters, even in so-called sanctuary cities."
An interview with Robin D.G. Kelley
www.bostonreview.net/articles/ren...
An interview with Robin D.G. Kelley
www.bostonreview.net/articles/ren...
Could there be anything more orwellian than the "board of peace".
#Gaza #FreePalestine #ethics #Trump
#Gaza #FreePalestine #ethics #Trump
His plan is to strip the United Nations - and thereby the international community - of any oversight of Gaza’s fate.
www.middleeasteye.net/opinion/trum...
www.middleeasteye.net/opinion/trum...
Trump’s 'Board of Peace' is the nail in Gaza’s coffin
Feckless European leaders like Starmer let Israel and the US tear up international law in Gaza. Now, faced with Greenland and Ukraine, they are suffering from a severe case of buyer’s regret
www.middleeasteye.net
January 23, 2026 at 1:52 PM
Could there be anything more orwellian than the "board of peace".
#Gaza #FreePalestine #ethics #Trump
#Gaza #FreePalestine #ethics #Trump
Aurora over Greenland:
January 21, 2026 at 5:36 AM
Aurora over Greenland:
This might be the best thing that has happened so far in 2026.
Kudos to Martha Root @martharoot.bsky.social
This is so good on so many levels. More creative hacktivism and badass investigative journalism please.
youtu.be/lJsS8lqCpwU?...
Kudos to Martha Root @martharoot.bsky.social
This is so good on so many levels. More creative hacktivism and badass investigative journalism please.
youtu.be/lJsS8lqCpwU?...
I Exposed, Infiltrated, and Shut Down a Racist Network Dressed as a Pink Power Ranger
YouTube video by Martha Root
youtu.be
January 17, 2026 at 11:51 PM
This might be the best thing that has happened so far in 2026.
Kudos to Martha Root @martharoot.bsky.social
This is so good on so many levels. More creative hacktivism and badass investigative journalism please.
youtu.be/lJsS8lqCpwU?...
Kudos to Martha Root @martharoot.bsky.social
This is so good on so many levels. More creative hacktivism and badass investigative journalism please.
youtu.be/lJsS8lqCpwU?...
Stop the militarization of local law enforcement!! Baton Rouge Acquires a Straight-Up Military Surveillance Drone | Electronic Frontier Foundation www.eff.org/deeplinks/20...
Baton Rouge Acquires a Straight-Up Military Surveillance Drone
The Baton Rouge Police Department announced this week that it will begin using a drone designed by military equipment manufacturer Lockheed Martin and Edge Autonomy, making it one of the first local p...
www.eff.org
January 17, 2026 at 4:52 PM
Stop the militarization of local law enforcement!! Baton Rouge Acquires a Straight-Up Military Surveillance Drone | Electronic Frontier Foundation www.eff.org/deeplinks/20...
In case you thought Canada was not fucked up too:
youtube.com/watch?v=T2Wu...
@breachmedia.ca
#cdnpoli
youtube.com/watch?v=T2Wu...
@breachmedia.ca
#cdnpoli
Canada’s border agents don’t deserve a pass
YouTube video by The Breach
youtube.com
January 17, 2026 at 1:12 PM
In case you thought Canada was not fucked up too:
youtube.com/watch?v=T2Wu...
@breachmedia.ca
#cdnpoli
youtube.com/watch?v=T2Wu...
@breachmedia.ca
#cdnpoli
The algorithm suggesting this video kinda makes sense right now.
I may never go the the USA again. Shithole country.
youtube.com/watch?v=LT3c...
I may never go the the USA again. Shithole country.
youtube.com/watch?v=LT3c...
David Bowie - I'm Afraid of Americans (Official Video) [4K]
YouTube video by David Bowie
youtube.com
January 16, 2026 at 2:53 PM
The algorithm suggesting this video kinda makes sense right now.
I may never go the the USA again. Shithole country.
youtube.com/watch?v=LT3c...
I may never go the the USA again. Shithole country.
youtube.com/watch?v=LT3c...
We need progressives running for sherrif all across America. Not to mention every other office. But law enforcement is ground zero in America.
"No law enforcement professional wears a mask"
youtube.com/watch?v=Ea3f...
#usPoli #lawEnforcement #ethics
"No law enforcement professional wears a mask"
youtube.com/watch?v=Ea3f...
#usPoli #lawEnforcement #ethics
Philly Sheriff Vows To Arrest ICE Agents
YouTube video by The Majority Report w/ Sam Seder
youtube.com
January 15, 2026 at 9:10 PM
We need progressives running for sherrif all across America. Not to mention every other office. But law enforcement is ground zero in America.
"No law enforcement professional wears a mask"
youtube.com/watch?v=Ea3f...
#usPoli #lawEnforcement #ethics
"No law enforcement professional wears a mask"
youtube.com/watch?v=Ea3f...
#usPoli #lawEnforcement #ethics
Whoah I almost totally missed this amidst all the awfulness. WTF?!? This so stupid and counterproductive. What possible rationale could there even be for this??
#cdnpoli
#cdnpoli
Quite frankly, it’s outrageous that Mark Carney is cutting Statistics Canada. If he was Stephen Harper or Pierre Poilievre, I feel like this would be getting a lot more backlash.
Carney of all people should know the importance of high-quality data and information about the country.
Carney of all people should know the importance of high-quality data and information about the country.
Statistics Canada to cut 850 jobs in 'dark time' for public service, union says
Federal statistics agency entered its workforce adjustment period Monday, sending notices to thousands of employees.
ottawacitizen.com
January 15, 2026 at 3:34 AM
Whoah I almost totally missed this amidst all the awfulness. WTF?!? This so stupid and counterproductive. What possible rationale could there even be for this??
#cdnpoli
#cdnpoli
Reposted by Ben West 🦋
What could possibly go wrong with scanning a random QR code and why can’t officers just show their faces and wear the identifiers and insignia they are required to wear already.
I am introducing the Quick Recognition (QR) Act, which requires ICE and CBP officers to wear uniforms featuring QR codes. When scanned, the code would generate a digital ID displaying the officer’s name, badge number, and law enforcement agency.
ICE should be unmasked both physically and digitally.
ICE should be unmasked both physically and digitally.
January 15, 2026 at 1:16 AM
What could possibly go wrong with scanning a random QR code and why can’t officers just show their faces and wear the identifiers and insignia they are required to wear already.