TL;DR: In September 2025, ICE spent $1.4 billion on surveillance technology, the highest monthly total in at least 18 years. They bought: facial recognition from Clearview AI ($9.2M), a deportation tracking system from Palantir ($30M), iris-scanning phones from BI2 ($4.6M), and reactivated a $2M contract with Paragon for military-grade spyware that can crack encrypted apps without you clicking anything. Senator Wyden is "extremely concerned." The ACLU wants a moratorium. ICE keeps buying.
$1.4 Billion in One Month
According to USASpending.gov, ICE's contracted obligations in September 2025 hit $1.4 billion, its highest monthly sum in at least 18 years [1].
What's driving it: Congress allocated over $170 billion for border security and immigration enforcement in July 2025's spending bill. ICE is spending it fast.
The shopping list:
| Vendor | Technology | Contract Value |
|---|---|---|
| Palantir | ImmigrationOS tracking platform | $30 million |
| Clearview AI | Facial recognition (60B faces) | $9.2 million |
| BI2 Technologies | Mobile iris scanning | $4.6 million |
| Paragon Solutions | Graphite spyware | $2 million |
| Flock Safety | Access to 80,000+ ALPR cameras | Via local police |
That's facial recognition, eye scanning, vehicle tracking, phone hacking, and a centralized deportation database, all in one spending spree.
Palantir: The $30 Million Deportation OS
We covered ImmigrationOS separately, but here's the summary:
- Pulls data from IRS, Social Security, passports, DMVs, license plate readers
- Builds profiles of deportation targets
- Tracks "self-deportations" in near real-time
- Streamlines detention and removal logistics
ICE justified the sole-source contract by saying Palantir is the "only source" capable of building it. They've been embedded in ICE since 2013. No one else can compete.
Clearview AI: $9.2 Million for 60 Billion Faces
We covered this contract too. Key points:
- 60 billion photos scraped from the internet without consent
- Largest public purchase of facial recognition by a U.S. federal agency
- Banned for Illinois state police under BIPA settlement
- ICE can use it anyway: federal agencies aren't covered
The stated purpose is child exploitation and officer assault investigations. But once you have a 60-billion-face database, the scope tends to expand.
BI2: Iris Scanning in Your Pocket
On September 23, 2025, ICE signed a $4.6 million contract with BI2 Technologies for mobile iris-scanning systems [2].
What it does:
- Scans a person's iris from 10-15 inches away using a smartphone
- Matches against a database of 5+ million records in real-time
- Works in the field, not just offices
- Called "mission critical" by ICE
The systems:
- IRIS™: Inmate Identification and Recognition System
- MORIS™: Mobile Offender Recognition and Information System
This is BI2's first federal contract. They've worked with the FBI's Next Generation Identification system before, but this is their entry into immigration enforcement.
Why iris scanning: It's considered more accurate than fingerprints. Harder to fake. Works even if someone's fingers are damaged or altered. ICE wants it for field identification: encountering someone on the street, scanning their eye, getting an ID match in seconds.
Paragon: The Spyware ICE Almost Lost
This one's complicated. And alarming.
The timeline:
- September 2024: ICE signs $2 million contract with Paragon Solutions for Graphite spyware
- Late 2024: Biden administration puts contract under review due to Executive Order 14093 (restricting foreign spyware)
- August 30, 2025: ICE lifts the "stop work order": contract reactivated
How they got around the ban: Paragon was an Israeli company. Executive Order 14093 restricts spyware "controlled by a foreign government or person." Solution? A Miami-based private equity firm (AE Industrial Partners) bought Paragon for $500 million and merged it into a Virginia-based company called REDLattice [3].
Foreign spyware becomes American spyware. Ban circumvented.
What Graphite Can Do
Paragon's Graphite spyware is military-grade. According to the Citizen Lab at University of Toronto [4]:
- Zero-click exploit: Infects phones without any user interaction
- Encrypted app access: Can read Signal, WhatsApp, and other encrypted messages
- Remote activation: Can turn on cameras and microphones
- Complete device access: Everything on the phone is accessible
The method: By adding someone to a WhatsApp group in a certain way, Graphite forces their phone to read an infected PDF file, automatically, invisibly, without the user doing anything.
Who Founded Paragon
Paragon was founded in Israel in 2019 by:
- Ehud Barak: Former Israeli Prime Minister and military intelligence general
- Ehud Schneorson: Former head of Unit 8200 (Israel's equivalent of the NSA)
These aren't random tech entrepreneurs. These are intelligence operatives building commercial surveillance tools.
The Italian Scandal
Earlier in 2025, WhatsApp revealed that 90 journalists and civil society figures in Italy had been targeted by Graphite. The Italian government admitted to spying on refugee rights activists. Paragon cancelled its Italian contract almost immediately [5].
The company that just lost a contract for spying on journalists? That's who ICE is buying from.
Flock Safety: 80,000 Cameras Without a Contract
ICE doesn't need a contract with Flock Safety. They get access through local police departments.
Our full Flock coverage explains the "side door" problem:
- Flock has 80,000+ AI-powered license plate readers nationwide
- Scans 20 billion vehicles per month
- Local cops have access; ICE asks them to search
- 4,000+ immigration-related searches found despite policies banning it
ICE doesn't show up in Flock's vendor list. They don't need to. The data flows through local partners.
Real-Time Location and Social Media Tracking
Beyond the named contracts, ICE has acquired systems capable of monitoring "hundreds of millions of phones every day" through real-time location and social media tracking [1].
Details on these systems are sparse. But the capability exists: track where phones are, track what people post, build profiles of targets and their networks.
Combined with Palantir's ImmigrationOS, Clearview's facial database, BI2's iris scanners, Paragon's phone hacking, and Flock's vehicle tracking. That's a comprehensive surveillance apparatus.
The Antifa Order: Surveillance Beyond Immigration
ICE sells its surveillance expansion as necessary for immigration enforcement. But there's a catch.
A new executive order to investigate "Antifa" gives ICE authority to surveil U.S. citizens who may not themselves be suspected of crimes [6].
Senator Ron Wyden's warning:
"I'm extremely concerned about how ICE will use spyware, facial recognition and other technology to further trample on the rights of Americans and anyone who Donald Trump labels as an enemy."
The tools being purchased aren't limited to immigration enforcement. They can be turned on anyone.
Where's the Oversight?
Groups like the ACLU and Human Rights Watch have called for a moratorium on facial recognition by federal agencies. They argue the lack of transparency and oversight could lead to "systemic violations of civil rights."
Congressional response: On October 6, 2025, Congresswoman Summer Lee led a letter demanding answers from DHS about the Paragon contract [7]. The letter raised concerns that Graphite can "covertly access private data on Americans' cell phones without their knowledge or consent."
DHS hasn't answered.
The Knight First Amendment Institute's statement:
"Reports that ICE has renewed its contract with spyware vendor Paragon compounds the civil liberties concerns surrounding the rapid and dramatic expansion of ICE's budget and authority. Spyware like Paragon's Graphite poses a profound threat to free speech and privacy."
Legal groups are suing the Trump administration to uncover how Israeli spyware tools are being used on U.S. communities [8]. The answers aren't public yet.
The Pattern
Look at how these technologies connect:
- Identify: Clearview AI matches a face from any photo
- Verify: BI2 iris scanners confirm identity in the field
- Track location: Flock Safety logs vehicle movements
- Monitor communications: Paragon Graphite reads encrypted messages
- Aggregate everything: Palantir ImmigrationOS ties it all together
- Execute: Deportation logistics streamlined
Each technology looks like a tool. Together, they're infrastructure for identifying, tracking, surveilling, and removing people at scale.
The Bottom Line
ICE spent $1.4 billion on surveillance in September 2025, the highest monthly total in 18 years. They bought:
- A $30 million deportation tracking system
- A $9.2 million contract to search 60 billion faces
- A $4.6 million iris-scanning phone app
- A $2 million military-grade spyware that cracks encrypted apps
- Access to 80,000 license plate cameras through local police
Senator Wyden is "extremely concerned." The ACLU wants a moratorium. Legal groups are suing for transparency. Congressional Democrats are demanding answers.
ICE keeps buying. The surveillance apparatus keeps growing. And most people won't know what it can do until it's used on them.
References
- Reason: ICE is mounting a mass surveillance campaign on American citizens (October 2025)
- Biometric Update: Sole source contract to BI2 expands ICE's use of biometric surveillance (September 2025)
- TechCrunch: ICE reactivates contract with spyware maker Paragon (September 2025)
- Citizen Lab: A First Look at Paragon's Proliferating Spyware Operations (March 2025)
- Access Now: The U.S. has reactivated its Paragon contract, and it should alarm everyone
- EFF: Statement on ICE Use of Paragon Solutions Malware (September 2025)
- Rep. Summer Lee: Demand Answers from DHS on Use of Foreign Spyware by ICE (October 2025)
- Center for Constitutional Rights: Legal Groups Sue Trump Administration Over Israeli Spyware (2025)