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The Guardian (UK): Revealed: how US immigration uses fake social media profiles across investigations

By immigrationprof

U.S. Department of Homeland Security logo

 

 and  for The Guardian (UK) reports on Department of Homeland Security (DHS) activities that is sure to worry civil libertarians.  The nub of it:  “Records from the Department of Homeland Security show it sought to expand undercover operations online despite pushback from Facebook.”  According to the story, “US immigration officials sought to expand their abilities to monitor and surveil social media activity and allowed officers to create and use fake social media profiles in a wide range of operations, including covertly researching the online presence of people seeking immigration benefits, new documents show.”  The report is based on records obtained through a public records request by the Brennan Center for Justice and shared with the Guardian. 

The story notes that law enforcement in the United States “have used fake accounts to spy on Black Lives Matter protesters pose as ordinary citizens and post comments attacking law enforcement critics; and send Facebook friend requests to targets of their investigations and then gather personal information without a judge’s approval for the digital search. Facebook officials have publicly objected to the practice by the police departments of Los Angeles and Memphis, and the new records reveal a private rebuke of the DHS.”

KJ

 

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