The Tech Powering Trump’s Border Crackdown
Since 2020, border enforcement agencies have spent $7.8 billion on immigration technologies, from GPS tracking devices to digital forensic tools.
These pieces of technology, most of which were initiated under the Biden Administration, are now part of Trump’s arsenal as he begins the largest deportation operation in American history.
Some of the most prominent beneficiaries include: Palantir, a provider of data analysis tools, which won $1 billion worth of contracts over the past four years, and Venntel, a provider of location data, which received $330K from several contracts with ICE between 2018 and 2022.
Other winners include startups building software to overcome passwords, surface deleted files, analyze email inboxes, and hack into phones.
Although these tools may be more effective for targeted investigations focused on ICE’s high-priority cases than for large-scale deportation operations, it is clear that tech companies stand to profit significantly as long as the border remains a priority.
