The United States Department of Homeland Security is requiring technology companies to hand over user information related to critics of the Trump administration, according to reports.
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In several cases in recent months, the Department of Homeland Security has used administrative subpoenas to request identifiable information about people who operate anonymous Instagram accounts that share posts about ICE in their neighborhoods. These subpoenas have also targeted people who have criticized Trump officials or protested government policies.
Unlike subpoenas, which require approval from a judge based on evidence of a crime, administrative subpoenas are issued by federal agencies. This allows investigators to request a wealth of information from technology and phone companies without judicial oversight.
While administrative subpoenas cannot obtain the content of a person’s emails, web searches, or location data, they can request specific user information, such as login times, locations, devices used, and identifiable information about account holders. Because these subpoenas do not have the power of a judge, it is largely up to companies to comply with the government’s requests.
The use of administrative calls by Trump officials to seek identifiable information about critics has raised concerns. Bloomberg reported that the Department of Homeland Security requested the identity of an anonymous Instagram account called @montocowatch, which aims to share resources to protect immigrant rights and due process in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania.
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This came amid a federal immigration crackdown across the United States that has sparked widespread protests. The Department of Homeland Security sent an administrative subpoena to Meta requesting personal information about the account administrator, citing a tip from a non-DHS employee who claimed that ICE agents were being monitored.
The American Civil Liberties Union, representing the account owner, said there was no evidence of wrongdoing and that the police recording and anonymous sharing of that recording is legal and protected by the First Amendment. The Department of Homeland Security later withdrew the call without explanation.
The ACLU described the call as part of a broader strategy to intimidate those who document immigration activities or criticize government actions.
Bloomberg noted that the effort to expose the @montcowatch account was not isolated, citing at least four other cases where the Department of Homeland Security used administrative subpoenas to identify people running Instagram accounts critical of the government. Those subpoenas were also withdrawn after the account owners filed legal actions to block the efforts.
In recent years, tech companies have published transparency reports detailing government data requests. However, most do not differentiate between judicial and administrative subpoenas, despite the fundamental differences between the two.
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A Washington Post report found that an administrative subpoena was also used to request information from Google about an American retiree shortly after a critical email was sent to the Department of Homeland Security's chief lawyer, Joseph Dernbach.
