ICE phones given to migrants have no data or calling services

The claims circulated online following the end of the pandemic-era

(Reuters) - Mobile phones provided to some migrants by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) for surveillance purposes do not have access to unlimited internet data or calling services, the agency said. Social media users, however, have said the devices include data and calls paid for by U.S. taxpayers.

The claims circulated online following the end of the pandemic-era U.S. border policy known as Title 42. Reuters reporting on the policy can be seen (here) (here).

A tweet with at least 10,700 retweets alleging U.S. taxpayers pay for migrant’s smartphones “with unlimited text and internet” can be seen (here). Another example is viewable (here) 

An ICE spokesperson said in a statement that the Alternative to Detention (ATD) program uses technology to ensure compliance to immigration orders for migrants who are released from custody. One of these technologies is the SmartLINK app used by ICE since 2018 that enables identity verification and communication with enrollees to the program via a mobile device, the spokesperson said.

Through this monitoring application, enrollees can send selfies for identity verification and have their location monitored “at the time of a scheduled check-in”, according to ICE’s website (www.ice.gov/features/atd). Other features of the app include “push notifications and reminders for upcoming appointments,” like court hearing reminders, as well as messaging officers and case specialists.

Its deployment has raised privacy and tracking concerns among civil rights organizations in the past (here) (here).

These devices, however, can only be used to navigate the SmartLINK application, and do not have access to internet or a calling plan, although they can make calls to 911 services, the ICE spokesperson said. ICE’s website says these must be returned upon completion or reassignment from the ATD program (www.ice.gov/features/atd).

Senior Attorney Laura Rivera from Just Futures Law, an immigration legal group, also said that the devices do not allow calls, texts, or internet access. “Any claims to the contrary are simply false and misleading. In truth, the tech in question serve as tracking devices that ICE uses to surveil immigrants,” she said in an emailed statement to Reuters.

As of April 22, 2023, 90% of the immigrants in the ATD program used SmartLINK, according to ICE’s latest statistics (here). This figure includes usage in personal devices as well as government issued phones.

VERDICT

Partly false. The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Alternative temporarily provides phones to immigrants as part of its Alternative to Detention (ATD) program, but these devices are not equipped with access to internet or calling services and are used for monitoring purposes.