The IT Nerd

By Jurgita Lapienytė, Chief Editor at Cybernews

Under the excuse of keeping United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) employees safe, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) invades your privacy.

Maybe it hasn’t happened to you — or you’re unaware it has — but if you’ve been critical of ICE on social media, DHS has likely requested your personal data from platforms like Meta or Google, including your contact details and physical location.

Reportedly, the DHS has issued hundreds of administrative subpoenas to Google, Reddit, Discord, and Meta, all seeking identification of people who have publicly criticized ICE. Wired recently reported on a case involving a Canadian man who got under the spotlight after Google revealed that the DHS had requested his location, activity logs, and other information.

The DHS issued a custom summons request [which they asked Google not to disclose,] which is used to investigate issues related to illegal imports. Notably, the man hasn’t been to the US for over a decade, and has been criticizing the Trump administration after federal agents killed Renee Good and Alex Pretti.

Now, if Google were to be trusted, insisting that their “processes for handling law enforcement requests are designed to protect users’ privacy while meeting our legal obligations,” we might all sleep soundly. But we shouldn’t.

But the scary part is that Google and other platforms HAVE all that information that the government could use against its people: email addresses, phone numbers, home addresses, activity logs, and whereabouts, among other sensitive data. Remember when ProtonMail, the European tech company praised for its privacy focus, shared an IP address of an activist with authorities, claiming it had no legal grounds to resist the request? This disclosure led to the activist’s arrest on criminal charges by French police and tarnished the reputation of the Swiss tech company. Unfortunately, it wasn’t an isolated incident for Proton.

We may choose to trust that companies will do their best to protect our data, since their reputation and profits depend on it. But we cannot always trust governments to protect us. It seems that federal agencies have been issuing custom summons with increasing frequency, raising suspicion about why they need data such as surveillance video from an abortion provider in Illinois or information from a Lutheran organization that provides refugees with humanitarian and housing support.

Don’t rely on corporate promises. The government can make sure they fail to deliver. Instead, take back control of your data and your safety.

How?

• Switching to privacy-focused tech options. Ditch Google, TikTok, Meta apps, forget data-harvesting and simply malicious browser extensions. May I suggest even exploring some European tech alternatives built with privacy in mind?
• Go analogue sometimes. Consider going on some adventures without any device. If you have your phone with you, your location is traceable, and you aren’t also mute.
• Opt out of personalization. Decline cookies, block ads, hide your location. That hyperpersonalization isn’t created for you — it’s designed so advertisers can know you better.
• Above all, be polite online. Exercising your free speech should not mean hate speech, doxxing and endangering federal agents or any other human beings.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR 

Jurgita Lapienytė is the Editor-in-Chief at Cybernews, where she leads a team of journalists and security experts dedicated to uncovering cyber threats through research, testing, and data-driven reporting. With a career spanning over 15 years, she has reported on major global events, including the 2008 financial crisis and the 2015 Paris terror attacks, and has driven transparency through investigative journalism. A passionate advocate for cybersecurity awareness and women in tech, Jurgita has interviewed leading cybersecurity figures and amplifies underrepresented voices in the industry. Recognized as the Cybersecurity Journalist of the Year and featured in Top Cyber News Magazine’s 40 Under 40 in Cybersecurity, she is a thought leader shaping the conversation around cybersecurity. Jurgita has been quoted internationally – by Metro UK,  The Epoch Times, Extra Bladet, Computer Bild, and more. Her team reports on proprietary research highlighted in such outlets as the BBC, Forbes, TechRadar, Daily Mail, Fox News, Yahoo, and much more.