Some bold reports from TechCrunch, Forbes, and 404 Media reveal a web of contracts with companies ranging from Palantir and Clearview AI to Cobwebs and Icor Technology, detailing the digital and tactical systems now embedded in immigration enforcement. The disclosures offer a rare look at the technology shaping ICE operations and the oversight questions they raise.
Clearview AI and facial recognition contracts
TechCrunch reported that ICE signed a contract worth $3.75 million with Clearview AI, the company best known for building large face-matching databases scraped from online images. That agreement supplements earlier purchases. The tech news platform says the agency previously bought “forensic software” for $1.1 million and nearly $800,000 in facial-recognition enterprise licenses.
Palantir’s Investigative Case Management and ImmigrationOS
Palantir, the data analytics firm long associated with law enforcement work, has continued to expand its footprint at the agency. TechCrunch report mentions a recent $18.5 million contract for a database system called Investigative Case Management (ICM), and a previously reported $95.9 million deal.
Business Insider also reported a Palantir project called “ImmigrationOS,” described in contract documents as a tool to streamline selection and apprehension operations, give near real-time visibility into departures, and track visa overstays.
Robots for tactical operations
Beyond data systems, Forbes reported that ICE’s tactical procurement has included a small, dexterous robot capable of opening doors, climbing stairs, and deploying “chemical grenades” or smoke devices. Contract records show a purchase of about $78,000 from Icor Technology for a platform equipped with a rotating claw arm and a wide-angle camera.
Forbes notes the Ottawa-based firm was acquired last year by Cadre Holdings. The reporting highlights concerns among civil-liberties advocates about the use of such equipment in home-entry operations and its broader implications for surveillance and enforcement tactics.
LexisNexis and large-scale data searches
Commercial data brokers and public-records platforms have also played a role. TechCrunch cites public records showing ICE has used LexisNexis products, including subscriptions to law-enforcement investigative databases, and notes the agency paid roughly $4.7 million this year for access. According to the reporting, earlier FOIA disclosures documented more than 1.2 million searches over a seven-month period using a tool called Accurint Virtual Crime Center.
Cobwebs social media and dark web monitoring
Reports detail purchases of social-media and dark-web monitoring software from Cobwebs. After Meta banned Cobwebs from scraping its platforms, Forbes reports ICE nevertheless spent more than $5 million on the company’s tools over time, including a recent $2 million purchase of a product called Tangles.
According to contract descriptions, Tangles and related tools can ingest historical communications, mobile forensics, location data, financial records, and web intelligence to assemble profiles of people of interest. The technology can also perform face detection and searches and includes a location-monitoring capability described in case studies as “WebLoc,” which can analyze mobile-device presence at specific sites to monitor trends around locations or events.
Magnet Forensics and phone unlocking
ICE’s technology purchases extend to tools designed to access the contents of phones and online accounts. TechCrunch reports a September contract with Magnet Forensics valued at $3 million for software licenses that help agents recover digital evidence, process multiple devices, and generate forensic reports. Magnet merged in 2023 with Grayshift, maker of GrayKey, a device widely used by law enforcement to bypass locks on mobile phones.
Paragon spyware under review and reactivation
Another strand of procurement involves commercial spyware. TechCrunch reports that ICE signed a $2 million contract with Israeli spyware maker Paragon Solutions in September 2024. That deal was placed under a federal “stop work order” for review, and later reactivated, according to the reporting; the practical status of Paragon’s system in field operations remained unclear in TechCrunch’s account. The company has faced controversy in Europe and, following corporate transactions, was referred to in communications as part of RedLattice after an acquisition by AE Industrial and discussions of a merger.