Center on Privacy & Technology
@georgetownprivacy.bsky.social
Center on Privacy & Technology at Georgetown Law
law.georgetown.edu/privacy-technology-center/
law.georgetown.edu/privacy-technology-center/
Pinned
Hello! 👋
Here to connect and share our work on resisting digital era mass surveillance.
Here to connect and share our work on resisting digital era mass surveillance.
Our ED Emily Tucker spoke with Semafor about how tech can be used to monitor the govt. & hold it accountable. “The technologies used by the government & by individuals are not comparable — ‘it’s like saying they have an atom bomb, & you have a pen knife,’ Tucker says.” Read the article here:
Clashes between ICE and protesters come down to the technology
Activists are creating text alert systems and tracking websites to monitor the whereabouts of federal agents.
www.semafor.com
January 31, 2026 at 3:56 PM
Our ED Emily Tucker spoke with Semafor about how tech can be used to monitor the govt. & hold it accountable. “The technologies used by the government & by individuals are not comparable — ‘it’s like saying they have an atom bomb, & you have a pen knife,’ Tucker says.” Read the article here:
Our Director of Research and Advocacy Stevie Glaberson recently spoke with MPR News’ Nina Mioni about how ICE’s surveillance tools enable the tracking of people in Minnesota. Read the article here:
How is ICE tracking people in Minnesota? An expert explains
The federal agents trying to meet the government’s mass deportation goals have new tools to help them find people to arrest and deport.
www.mprnews.org
January 22, 2026 at 9:37 PM
Our Director of Research and Advocacy Stevie Glaberson recently spoke with MPR News’ Nina Mioni about how ICE’s surveillance tools enable the tracking of people in Minnesota. Read the article here:
We are partnering with the Georgetown Law Technology Review to host the 2026 Symposium next week. The Symposium features our founder Alvaro Bedoya, our Faculty Advisors Julie Cohen, Paul Ohm, Laura Moy, and one of our Advisory Board members Ulises A. Mejias.
January 21, 2026 at 3:52 PM
We are partnering with the Georgetown Law Technology Review to host the 2026 Symposium next week. The Symposium features our founder Alvaro Bedoya, our Faculty Advisors Julie Cohen, Paul Ohm, Laura Moy, and one of our Advisory Board members Ulises A. Mejias.
Our Postdoctoral Fellow Marianna Poyares and Executive Director Emily Tucker were quoted in an Inkstick Media article that explores how surveillance technologies and the misregulation of AI-supported platforms target and harm many immigrant communities in the United States. Read the article here:
What Will Unchecked Artificial Intelligence Mean for Immigration?
Critics say the Trump administration’s immigration agenda is a “nightmare” brought about by mass surveillance and artificial intelligence.
inkstickmedia.com
January 20, 2026 at 7:54 PM
Our Postdoctoral Fellow Marianna Poyares and Executive Director Emily Tucker were quoted in an Inkstick Media article that explores how surveillance technologies and the misregulation of AI-supported platforms target and harm many immigrant communities in the United States. Read the article here:
Our ED Emily Tucker was quoted in a Financial Times (@financialtimes.com) article on the Trump administration’s expanding use of commercial and government data to track and deport immigrants. Read the full article here:
Trump’s immigration data dragnet
The US is pulling in vast amounts of personal information in its drive to deport 1mn people this year
ig.ft.com
January 12, 2026 at 5:11 PM
Our ED Emily Tucker was quoted in a Financial Times (@financialtimes.com) article on the Trump administration’s expanding use of commercial and government data to track and deport immigrants. Read the full article here:
Reposted by Center on Privacy & Technology
“The lawsuit claims that the use of Flock cameras constitutes an illegal search and violates his 4th Amendment right to privacy and association. The city has also broken California law barring out-of-state law enforcement from using such data, Moore’s lawsuit alleges.”
Retired teacher fights SFPD’s ‘Orwellian’ camera surveillance
The police department is being sued over its use of Flock cameras that record license plates.
sfstandard.com
December 30, 2025 at 12:37 AM
“The lawsuit claims that the use of Flock cameras constitutes an illegal search and violates his 4th Amendment right to privacy and association. The city has also broken California law barring out-of-state law enforcement from using such data, Moore’s lawsuit alleges.”
Last month, DHS issued a notice of its intent to change the agency rule on DNA collection to give itself essentially unlimited authority to take DNA from anyone. 48 members of Congress signed a letter opposing the rule. You have until Jan 2 to submit your comment.
drive.google.com/file/d/1tqSA...
drive.google.com/file/d/1tqSA...
Clarke - DHS Biometrics Public Comment Letter - 12.19.25.pdf
drive.google.com
December 23, 2025 at 10:46 PM
Last month, DHS issued a notice of its intent to change the agency rule on DNA collection to give itself essentially unlimited authority to take DNA from anyone. 48 members of Congress signed a letter opposing the rule. You have until Jan 2 to submit your comment.
drive.google.com/file/d/1tqSA...
drive.google.com/file/d/1tqSA...
This story from @rollingstone.com draws extensively on two of our reports, Raiding the Genome and American Dragnet. The US government is building a vast genetic surveillance apparatus in the name of immigration enforcement. Great quotes in here from @sglabe.bsky.social.
After two decades on the books, a little-used federal law is being activated in ways that could turn immigration screening into the backbone of a far-reaching DNA surveillance system.
It wouldn’t stop at the border.
Story: bit.ly/44Eod6j
It wouldn’t stop at the border.
Story: bit.ly/44Eod6j
December 22, 2025 at 4:54 PM
This story from @rollingstone.com draws extensively on two of our reports, Raiding the Genome and American Dragnet. The US government is building a vast genetic surveillance apparatus in the name of immigration enforcement. Great quotes in here from @sglabe.bsky.social.
Our ED, Emily Tucker, talked to @madisyn-writes.bsky.social about why many of the folks who helped advocate for the Maryland Driver Privacy Act are now worried that the state hasn’t actually been following the law since it went into effect.
Senator Wyden of Oregon and others allege that Maryland state systems currently allow Immigration Customs & Enforcement (ICE) to access sensitive personal data without a warrant. Read the story here.
Maryland Allegedly Illegally Sharing Driver's License Data With ICE
A letter from an Oregon senator, a governor who might be sitting on a secret, and the system that tells ICE everything about you, no warrant required.
the-backbone.beehiiv.com
December 20, 2025 at 9:15 PM
Our ED, Emily Tucker, talked to @madisyn-writes.bsky.social about why many of the folks who helped advocate for the Maryland Driver Privacy Act are now worried that the state hasn’t actually been following the law since it went into effect.
Our Associate Emerald Tse was featured in a Documented article about Palantir’s development of surveillance tech that targets immigrant communities & advocates.
"These surveillance technology tools aren’t new, they’re just more powerful than they were before," said Tse.
Read the whole article here:
"These surveillance technology tools aren’t new, they’re just more powerful than they were before," said Tse.
Read the whole article here:
Immigrant Advocates Are Targeting Tech — and Palantir Is Public Enemy No. 1
Activists and immigration advocates are seeking to bring Palantir's elusive digital infrastructure into the public eye and are urging states to divest from the company.
documentedny.com
December 15, 2025 at 7:14 PM
Our Associate Emerald Tse was featured in a Documented article about Palantir’s development of surveillance tech that targets immigrant communities & advocates.
"These surveillance technology tools aren’t new, they’re just more powerful than they were before," said Tse.
Read the whole article here:
"These surveillance technology tools aren’t new, they’re just more powerful than they were before," said Tse.
Read the whole article here:
"States should ignore this ridiculous EO" as well as any similar attempts to preempt legislatively. The president's billionaire cronies have made him understand that controlling data means controlling resources means controlling people. This EO is a declaration that we must all submit.
BREAKING: Trump's executive order challenges states’ authority to regulate AI and mitigate its massive harms.
Not only is it senseless for Trump to try blocking states’ ability to regulate Big Tech, he actually lacks the authority.
States should ignore this ridiculous EO.
Not only is it senseless for Trump to try blocking states’ ability to regulate Big Tech, he actually lacks the authority.
States should ignore this ridiculous EO.
December 12, 2025 at 6:49 PM
"States should ignore this ridiculous EO" as well as any similar attempts to preempt legislatively. The president's billionaire cronies have made him understand that controlling data means controlling resources means controlling people. This EO is a declaration that we must all submit.
Our Director of Research & Advocacy Stevie Glaberson spoke with Stephen Rhode and one of our Advisory Board members Heidi Boghosian for their podcast Law & Disorder. They discussed our Raiding the Genome report and 2025 update. Listen to the whole episode here:
Law and Disorder November 10, 2025 | Law and Disorder Radio
lawanddisorder.org
December 11, 2025 at 4:05 PM
Our Director of Research & Advocacy Stevie Glaberson spoke with Stephen Rhode and one of our Advisory Board members Heidi Boghosian for their podcast Law & Disorder. They discussed our Raiding the Genome report and 2025 update. Listen to the whole episode here:
Earlier this year, our ED Emily Tucker wrote a perspective piece for Tech Policy Press urging for hard limits on the scale of corporate data collection, titled “To Have Democracy, We Must Contest Data.” Read her article here:
To Have Democracy, We Must Contest Data | TechPolicy.Press
Emily Tucker makes the case for redlines for data, not AI—real limits on corporate data collection to protect democracy and political self-determination.
www.techpolicy.press
December 10, 2025 at 2:08 PM
Earlier this year, our ED Emily Tucker wrote a perspective piece for Tech Policy Press urging for hard limits on the scale of corporate data collection, titled “To Have Democracy, We Must Contest Data.” Read her article here:
Our ED Emily Tucker recently spoke with @npr.org's Jude Joffe-Block about how ICE surveillance violates privacy and civil rights. Read the article here: www.npr.org/2025/11/08/n....
December 8, 2025 at 2:19 PM
Our ED Emily Tucker recently spoke with @npr.org's Jude Joffe-Block about how ICE surveillance violates privacy and civil rights. Read the article here: www.npr.org/2025/11/08/n....
Our former Senior Associate Clarence Okoh co-wrote an article for Tech Policy Press detailing the risks associated with the implementation of AI-powered surveillance tools in schools, titled "Unproven Vape Detection Tech Expands Surveillance in Schools, Threatening Privacy." Read it here:
Unproven Vape Detection Tech Expands Surveillance in Schools, Threatening Privacy | TechPolicy.Press
The marketing of AI-driven surveillance solutions to schools is outpacing administrators’ capacity to establish good policies, says a team of researchers.
www.techpolicy.press
December 5, 2025 at 4:00 PM
Our former Senior Associate Clarence Okoh co-wrote an article for Tech Policy Press detailing the risks associated with the implementation of AI-powered surveillance tools in schools, titled "Unproven Vape Detection Tech Expands Surveillance in Schools, Threatening Privacy." Read it here:
Check it out: The Metropolitan Washington Workshop on Immigration & Race is holding a discussion TOMORROW. Join for a discussion on how the US surveillance apparatus built on migrant data extractivism extends to all of society. Register here: go.gwu.edu/mwwir.
December 4, 2025 at 9:58 PM
Check it out: The Metropolitan Washington Workshop on Immigration & Race is holding a discussion TOMORROW. Join for a discussion on how the US surveillance apparatus built on migrant data extractivism extends to all of society. Register here: go.gwu.edu/mwwir.
In September we released an update to our 2024 report, “Raiding the Gnome,” showing that CBP has taken DNA from ~2,000 U.S. citizens without any judicial oversight. The program is illegal and impacts everyone. Hear more from our Director of Research & Advocacy:
December 4, 2025 at 6:56 PM
In September we released an update to our 2024 report, “Raiding the Gnome,” showing that CBP has taken DNA from ~2,000 U.S. citizens without any judicial oversight. The program is illegal and impacts everyone. Hear more from our Director of Research & Advocacy:
Our Senior Associate Clarence Okoh recently co-authored an article titled, “Baltimore County must protect Black children from dangerous tech. Here’s how.” The article describes how the discrepancies in AI detection systems in schools are putting children at risk as opposed to keeping them safe.
OP-ED: Baltimore County must protect Black children from dangerous A.I. Here's how.
Big Tech is known to “move fast and break things.” But who is left in pieces? Residents in Baltimore County recently witnessed a new technology nearly shatter a child’s life. Last week, a squad of p...
baltimorebeat.com
December 3, 2025 at 4:34 PM
Our Senior Associate Clarence Okoh recently co-authored an article titled, “Baltimore County must protect Black children from dangerous tech. Here’s how.” The article describes how the discrepancies in AI detection systems in schools are putting children at risk as opposed to keeping them safe.
Our ED Emily Tucker is speaking on the “Responsible AI and Privacy” panel hosted by Good Systems at UT-Austin this Wednesday 11/19 at 10 AM CST. Join for a discussion about where privacy stands in the technological revolution of AI! Register here (Zoom available): responsibleai2025.splashthat.com.
November 17, 2025 at 10:55 PM
Our ED Emily Tucker is speaking on the “Responsible AI and Privacy” panel hosted by Good Systems at UT-Austin this Wednesday 11/19 at 10 AM CST. Join for a discussion about where privacy stands in the technological revolution of AI! Register here (Zoom available): responsibleai2025.splashthat.com.
How do news media, AI and data governance shape the information we all rely on? 👉 Nordicom recently published “Information Ecosystems and Troubled Democracy: The State of Knowledge on News Media, AI, and Data Governance.”
November 13, 2025 at 6:27 PM
How do news media, AI and data governance shape the information we all rely on? 👉 Nordicom recently published “Information Ecosystems and Troubled Democracy: The State of Knowledge on News Media, AI, and Data Governance.”
Read this letter from Sen. Wyden and 39 other lawmakers to state governors warning them that they are sharing their residents' data with ICE. www.documentcloud.org/documents/26...
congressional-DMV-ICE-letter-to-dem-governors
www.documentcloud.org
November 12, 2025 at 5:41 PM
Read this letter from Sen. Wyden and 39 other lawmakers to state governors warning them that they are sharing their residents' data with ICE. www.documentcloud.org/documents/26...
This Fall, we welcomed Ayah Eldosougi, our new Fritz Fellow, and Taman Mohamed, our new Justice Fellow. They recently sat down to talk privacy, power, and podcasts. Read their conversation here: medium.com/@georgetownp...
November 12, 2025 at 4:46 PM
This Fall, we welcomed Ayah Eldosougi, our new Fritz Fellow, and Taman Mohamed, our new Justice Fellow. They recently sat down to talk privacy, power, and podcasts. Read their conversation here: medium.com/@georgetownp...
Join us in congratulating our Director of Research & Advocacy Stevie Glaberson for being selected to join the 2025-26 cohort of Gender+ Justice Initiative Fellows!
October 28, 2025 at 3:39 PM
Join us in congratulating our Director of Research & Advocacy Stevie Glaberson for being selected to join the 2025-26 cohort of Gender+ Justice Initiative Fellows!
Our ED Emily Tucker spoke with @politico.com’s Alfred Ng about ICE's new contract for skip tracing for today’s Morning Tech newsletter. “It’s surveillance that targets people that are typically hard to find in the databases that already exist,” said Tucker.
October 24, 2025 at 7:50 PM
Our ED Emily Tucker spoke with @politico.com’s Alfred Ng about ICE's new contract for skip tracing for today’s Morning Tech newsletter. “It’s surveillance that targets people that are typically hard to find in the databases that already exist,” said Tucker.
📢📢📢 Don’t miss this great event happening TODAY!
Join us to learn how 5 experts have made their own path in the privacy field.
Join us to learn how 5 experts have made their own path in the privacy field.
📢 Georgetown students!! Interested in a career in privacy? Join us on October 20 to hear from professionals who’ve found a range of pathways to their careers in privacy.
October 20, 2025 at 5:29 PM
📢📢📢 Don’t miss this great event happening TODAY!
Join us to learn how 5 experts have made their own path in the privacy field.
Join us to learn how 5 experts have made their own path in the privacy field.