ICE's $100 Million Surveillance Programme Could Sweep Ordinary Citizens Into Intelligence Files

Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is fast-tracking a $100 million (£75 million) surveillance programme to place 142 intelligence agents across more than two dozen US cities, a move experts warn could expose ordinary citizens to government scrutiny, not just immigrants.

The programme, Enforcement and Removal Operations Overwatch and National Security Enforcement (ERO ONE), appeared in a statement of work published on 18 September. Under the proposal, contractors would analyse classified and unclassified data to identify 'trends, patterns, relationships, threats, and intelligence gaps' for ICE deportation missions.

Jay Stanley, a senior policy analyst with the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), told The American Prospect the plan is 'a nightmare in the making' and 'looks dangerously like the construction of an internal spying agency'. He and other specialists who reviewed the documents warned that the analytical tools could reach beyond immigration enforcement.

How Ordinary Citizens Get Swept In

ERO ONE analysts would conduct 'network, link and relationship' analyses, examining a target and people connected to them. That research could bring household members, relatives, friends, acquaintances, and carpool partners into records, regardless of their immigration status.

The statement of work tasks contractors with identifying relationships among 'individuals, organisations, locations, events, activities, data points, and other entities'. Former military intelligence analyst Michael Wriston, who performed similar work, compared the method with US operations in Afghanistan, Iraq, Yemen, and Syria. 'No one is safe. No one,' he said.

Why the Clearance Rules Matter

The procurement documents require personnel to hold an active Top Secret clearance and be eligible to access Sensitive Compartmented Information (SCI). Brian Murphy, a contractor who spent 25 years at ICE's parent Department of Homeland Security (DHS), said agencies seek pre-cleared staff when they need to begin work quickly.

'I've only seen it when there is an imminent need to work on something right now,' Murphy said. He believes the programme's scope could extend beyond immigration enforcement, although that is his assessment rather than a stated government objective.

A Nationwide Footprint

According to procurement documents, the 142 intelligence specialists and two project managers would cover 26 field locations and three national centres. Locations include Atlanta, Boston, Buffalo, Chicago, Dallas, Denver, Detroit, El Paso, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, Philadelphia, Phoenix, San Francisco, Seattle, and Washington, DC.

The Department of Homeland Security's acquisition forecast estimates a formal solicitation on 10 December 2026, with the contract expected to run into 2032. The programme remains in procurement planning, and the notice does not commit to awarding a contract.

The Accountability Gap

The documents do not identify specific individuals or groups to be targeted. Stanley noted that immigration authorities already use surveillance tools, including facial recognition, cellphone location tracking, and bulk data purchases. According to experts who reviewed the plan, ERO ONE could use that information.

Murphy said bidders could face legal risks because the documents do not establish whether all the information they might be required to analyse was gathered lawfully.

DHS did not respond to The American Prospect's request for information or comment on whether the programme could be used to spy on political opponents. The central unresolved question is how ICE will use the proposed analytical capacity and what safeguards will prevent people with no connection to an immigration offence from being drawn into its intelligence work.