According to The New York Times, the Department of Homeland Security is increasing pressure on tech companies to identify the owners of social media accounts that criticize Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
That’s in line with other recent reports, with Bloomberg pointing to five cases in which Homeland Security sought to identify the owners of anonymous Instagram accounts, with the department withdrawing its subpoenas after the owners sued. And a Washington Post story described Homeland Security’s growing use of administrative subpoenas — which do not require a judge’s approval — to target Americans.
Now, the NYT says the practice, once used sparingly, has become increasingly common in recent months, with the department sending hundreds of these subpoenas to Google, Reddit, Discord and Meta. The subpoenas reportedly targeted accounts that did not have a real name attached and either criticized ICE or described the locations of ICE agents.
Google, Meta and Reddit have reportedly complied in at least some cases. Following past comments, Google said it informs users of these subpoenas when possible, and that it will decline when the subpoenas are “excessive.”