ICE Director Told Congress There's No Database Tracking Americans

Todd Lyons said it under oath. His agency's own contracts say he's wrong.

TL;DR: On February 10, 2026, Acting ICE Director Todd Lyons told the House Homeland Security Committee that "there is no database that's tracking United States citizens." Meanwhile, ICE operates Mobile Fortify, a facial recognition app querying 1.2 billion photos, used 100,000+ times. It pays $5.7 million for AI that scans 8 billion social media posts daily. It runs a 24/7 intelligence center specifically built for tracking and targeting. The Cato Institute called his testimony either perjury or ignorance of his own agency.

What He Said

The exchange happened during a House Homeland Security Committee oversight hearing on February 10. Rep. Lou Correa (D-CA) played a video clip that had gone viral: an ICE agent in Portland, Maine, telling someone filming an enforcement operation that they'd be added to a "nice little database" [1].

Correa asked Lyons directly: does ICE maintain databases that track American citizens?

"I can't speak for that individual," Lyons said of the Portland agent. "But I can assure you that there is no database that's tracking United States citizens" [1].

That's a clear statement, made under oath, to Congress.

It's also contradicted by ICE's own procurement records, court filings, and investigative reporting from Bloomberg, NBC News, the Washington Post, and WBUR.

Receipt #1: Mobile Fortify, 1.2 Billion Faces

ICE agents carry a facial recognition app called Mobile Fortify on their smartphones. Built by NEC, it lets agents photograph anyone they encounter and instantly run that face against government biometric databases containing more than 1.2 billion images, according to federal records reviewed by Bloomberg [2].

It's been used in the field more than 100,000 times, per a lawsuit filed by Illinois and Chicago [3].

ICE deployed Mobile Fortify without completing the required Privacy Impact Assessment, the legally mandated review that's supposed to happen before agencies turn surveillance tech loose on the public [3].

Rep. Bennie Thompson, ranking member of the same committee where Lyons testified, has said that ICE officers told Congress "an apparent biometric match by Mobile Fortify is a 'definitive' determination of a person's status" and that "an ICE officer may ignore evidence of American citizenship, including a birth certificate, if the app says the person is an alien" [4].

American citizens have been detained based on Mobile Fortify matches. That's not theoretical. It happened.

Is a 1.2-billion-image biometric database queried 100,000+ times a "database that's tracking United States citizens"? You tell me.

Receipt #2: Zignal Labs, 8 Billion Posts Per Day

In September 2025, ICE signed a $5.7 million, five-year contract with Carahsoft Technology for Zignal Labs, an AI social media surveillance platform previously used by the Israeli military and the Pentagon [5].

Zignal Labs scans more than 8 billion social media posts per day across 100+ languages. It uses machine learning, computer vision, and OCR to extract metadata, geolocation, faces, logos, and map social connections [5].

That means ICE has a system that can monitor what Americans post on social media, identify them by face, geolocate them, and map their relationships, running 24 hours a day.

Separately, ICE holds a $4.2 million contract with Fivecast for its ONYX tool, which scans social media, the dark web, and online marketplaces [6].

Combined: nearly $10 million in active contracts for AI-powered systems that monitor, identify, and track people online. But sure, no database tracking Americans.

Receipt #3: NCAT, The 24/7 Intelligence Center

ICE operates the National Criminal Analysis and Targeting Center (NCAT) in Williston, Vermont. It's a 24/7 intelligence operation that performs targeting and analysis for ICE agents in the field [7].

On February 10 (the same day Lyons testified) Vermont State Police arrested 11 protesters at the NCAT facility who were demanding accountability for ICE's surveillance operations [7].

The Trump administration expanded NCAT's budget to hire more staff specifically for social media surveillance, according to WBUR's investigation [6]. The center integrates data from multiple systems to generate targeting profiles for field agents.

That's the definition of a tracking database. It exists to track people and send that information to agents who go find them.

Receipt #4: The Portland Agent Said It Out Loud

Lyons told Congress he "can't speak for that individual," the Portland agent who told a bystander they'd be added to a "nice little database." But the Cato Institute's Patrick Eddington called the bluff [1].

The facial recognition photos agents collect from people on the street have to be stored somewhere, Eddington noted. They don't disappear after the field check. Mobile Fortify queries a database. That database stores results. The images agents capture get added to government systems.

"Either the director committed perjury," Eddington said, "or he's unaware of what his own agency does" [1].

The Pattern

This isn't an isolated denial. It fits a pattern of federal agencies downplaying surveillance capabilities when questioned by Congress:

  • 2013: DNI James Clapper told Sen. Ron Wyden the NSA does "not wittingly" collect data on millions of Americans. Edward Snowden proved that was false weeks later.
  • 2024: FBI Director Christopher Wray told Congress Section 702 searches of Americans' data were "narrowly targeted." An internal audit found the FBI had run improper searches on January 6 defendants, George Floyd protesters, and a sitting member of Congress.
  • 2026: Todd Lyons tells Congress "there is no database that's tracking United States citizens" while his agency operates a 1.2-billion-image facial recognition system, pays $10 million for AI social media monitoring, and runs a 24/7 targeting center.

Same playbook. Deny under oath. Hope nobody checks.

What You Can Do

If You Film ICE Operations

You have the right to record federal agents in public. But know that agents can photograph you back and run your face through Mobile Fortify. Wear sunglasses, a hat, or a mask. Record from a distance. Use a secure messaging app to transmit footage.

Lock Down Your Social Media

ICE's Zignal Labs and Fivecast contracts mean your public posts are being scanned by AI. Set accounts to private. Remove location data from photos. Avoid posting about protests or immigration in public-facing accounts.

Support the Legal Challenges

The ACLU filed a class action over ICE's facial recognition use at protests. The "ICE Out of My Face Act" would ban ICE from using facial recognition outside ports of entry. Contact your representatives.

Know Your Rights

You are not required to provide ID to ICE agents on the street. You have the right to remain silent. A biometric match is not grounds for arrest without additional evidence, despite what ICE agents have claimed.

References

  1. FedScoop - Acting ICE director denies existence of database tracking US citizens (February 10, 2026)
  2. Bloomberg - DHS Face-Scanning App Pulls From 1.2 Billion-Image Database (February 2, 2026)
  3. NBC News - How ICE agents are using facial recognition technology to bring surveillance to the streets (February 2026)
  4. Washington Post - The powerful tools in ICE's arsenal to track suspects, and protesters (February 2026)
  5. Truthout - ICE Just Spent Millions on a Social Media Surveillance AI Program (October 2025)
  6. WBUR On Point - Inside the AI Surveillance State (February 6, 2026)
  7. WBUR - Vermont State Police arrest protesters at ICE surveillance facility in Williston (February 10, 2026)