Since its founding in 2003, data-mining firm Palantir has made quite a name for itself because of its willingness to work with law enforcement and government agencies. In December, Palantir sent a statement to the New York Times after reports that the company renewed a $38 million contract with Immigrant and Customs Enforcement(ICE). There are two main divisions of ICE: Homeland Security Investigations and Enforcement and Removal Operations(E.R.O). Palantir was explicit in saying that it did not work for E.R.O. In fact, in the statement Palantir said “We do not work for E.R.O.” Recent revelations have shown that’s not entirely true. Documents obtained by the American Immigration Council and other advocacy groups through Freedom of Information Act litigation reveal that the company was more involved with deportation, detention, and family separation than it cared to admit. Using Palantir’s software, ICE agents built profiles of immigrant children and their family members. According...

Homeland Security’s Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has consistently demonstrated an interest in using tech to target immigrant communities. Now, in California, lawmakers are considering terminating all contracts with tech companies that work with ICE and banning the state from investing in them. The Sanctuary State Contracting and Investment Act was introduced by Democrat Assemblyman Rob Bonta. If the bill passes, state and local agencies would be prohibited from entering into contracts with companies providing a federal immigration agency with any data broker, extreme vetting, or detention facilities services “unless the state or local agency has made a finding that no reasonable alternative exists.” If passed, the California Department of Justice would compile and publish a list of all contractors working with ICE that people could consult as a resource. Although California already prohibits state and local agencies from directly sharing data with ICE, it’s happened...