The US government's vast data collection efforts are increasingly putting American citizens at risk. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has been rapidly merging data from across agencies, primarily for the purpose of enforcing draconian immigration policies. This includes combining voter registration and verification data with immigration status, location, and phone numbers.
Citizens living in the US are being detained and subjected to extensive questioning by immigration authorities. In recent months, several cases have surfaced where American citizens were wrongly detained at construction sites or other locations while simply minding their own business. These detentions often result in long periods of time spent in custody before charges are even made.
Experts warn that data is not easily isolated when combined from different agencies. This can lead to mistakes in the data, or it may just not be up-to-date. Drawing on inaccurate data could mean that people who should be eligible for government benefits might be shut out or that eligible voters might be removed from the voter rolls.
The risks of this increased surveillance extend beyond issues like government benefits and voting rights. Detainees have reported being subjected to facial recognition tools, which are not foolproof, and then facing removal proceedings without adequate access to resources or updates on their whereabouts.
Naturalized citizens are particularly at risk due to inconsistencies in data sharing between agencies. A social security number, once issued for a lawful permanent resident, remains associated with the individual even after they become US citizens. This can lead to outdated records being used against them by immigration authorities.
The lack of a system to address these issues has left many wondering how someone would clear their social security number or receive protection from DHS. With such vast amounts of data at the disposal of immigration authorities, concerns about surveillance and mistreatment are growing among immigrant rights groups and citizens alike.
Citizens living in the US are being detained and subjected to extensive questioning by immigration authorities. In recent months, several cases have surfaced where American citizens were wrongly detained at construction sites or other locations while simply minding their own business. These detentions often result in long periods of time spent in custody before charges are even made.
Experts warn that data is not easily isolated when combined from different agencies. This can lead to mistakes in the data, or it may just not be up-to-date. Drawing on inaccurate data could mean that people who should be eligible for government benefits might be shut out or that eligible voters might be removed from the voter rolls.
The risks of this increased surveillance extend beyond issues like government benefits and voting rights. Detainees have reported being subjected to facial recognition tools, which are not foolproof, and then facing removal proceedings without adequate access to resources or updates on their whereabouts.
Naturalized citizens are particularly at risk due to inconsistencies in data sharing between agencies. A social security number, once issued for a lawful permanent resident, remains associated with the individual even after they become US citizens. This can lead to outdated records being used against them by immigration authorities.
The lack of a system to address these issues has left many wondering how someone would clear their social security number or receive protection from DHS. With such vast amounts of data at the disposal of immigration authorities, concerns about surveillance and mistreatment are growing among immigrant rights groups and citizens alike.
. Like, what's next? They gonna start tracking our Netflix history too? 
No seriously though, I get it, national security and all that, but can't they just have a system in place to check for errors and stuff? It's not like we're talking about some sketchy, unverifiable data here. We're talking about US citizens' records... it's basic human rights 101 
. I mean, what if you're born in the States, become a citizen, but still have that old SS number? It's like they're playing with fire here 
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. Someone needs to take a closer look at this whole data collection thing and figure out how to get it right 
and it freaks me out so much how do we even know that's not happening to american citizens too? like what if you're at the store or something and your face gets scanned for some reason?! 
and don't even get me started on voting rights... I just wanna vote but all these changes to the system are making me super nervous 
. This huge data collection thingy is not just affecting immigrants, it's all of us! I mean, what if someone makes a mistake with their social security number or gets wrongly detained? It's like, they could be stuck in limbo for ages before anyone figures out it was a glitch 
. And the worst part is, there doesn't seem to be any way to clear that stuff up easily 
. It's like, can we just have a system in place to prevent this kind of thing from happening? 
I mean, come on... the US government is basically collecting all our personal info and using it to justify deporting people who haven't even committed a crime yet 
. And now they're combining voter registration data with immigration status? That's just peachy 
. I'm surprised they didn't think of adding 'favorite pizza topping' to the mix 
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. Can't they just make it easier for people to navigate the system instead of making it more complicated and prone to errors? 
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I mean, yeah, national security is important and all that but do we really need to be scrutinized like this? It's like, I get it, they're trying to keep everyone safe but what if we accidentally have our rights taken away because of some tiny error in their system? 
It's already hard enough trying to navigate the system as a naturalized citizen - last thing I want is some outdated info getting in the way of me accessing basic services like healthcare or social security 
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. We need a way to separate the bad data from the good info, or we'll keep seeing people getting mistreated 
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. People should feel safe in their own country without being harassed by immigration authorities 
. We need some serious changes ASAP 
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. I mean, think about it - we're already living in a time where social media is like, super private 
. And the facial recognition tools? Not exactly foolproof 
. i've got a friend whose cousin was wrongly detained at a construction site for like 2 weeks just cuz of some messed up data 
. This can't just be ignored, people are getting hurt by these errors and detentions 
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. That's so stressful! And the facial recognition tools? Not foolproof at all 
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. This lack of accountability and oversight is giving me PTSD 
... naturalized citizens are already at a disadvantage with these inconsistencies in data sharing... it's like they're living in limbo 
. We need some serious reform ASAP before people start getting wrongly detained or denied benefits because of outdated info 
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it's wild how much power the gov't thinks they have with this data collection stuff. and can we talk about naturalized citizens? shouldn't they be able to clear their social security numbers after becoming a citizen?! it's like, come on gov't get your act together