Rachel Levinson-Waldman
@rlevinsonwaldman.bsky.social
Director, Liberty & National Security Program, Brennan Center for Justice. Raised in Austin TX; in DC for last 20+ years; MA/WA/IL/CA/NZ in between. Owner of extremely cute dog.
I am preemptively grateful for whatever it is you’re writing!
November 25, 2025 at 7:30 PM
I am preemptively grateful for whatever it is you’re writing!
Your post is literally the first I’ve seen of this.
November 25, 2025 at 7:28 PM
Your post is literally the first I’ve seen of this.
The letter observes that these efforts don't further foreign policy, though that's a justification - instead, they undermine US foreign relations & impose substantial damage upon the U.S. economy, scientific leadership, and legacy of building trust with future leaders from around the world. 5/5
November 24, 2025 at 11:09 PM
The letter observes that these efforts don't further foreign policy, though that's a justification - instead, they undermine US foreign relations & impose substantial damage upon the U.S. economy, scientific leadership, and legacy of building trust with future leaders from around the world. 5/5
As the letter notes, the U.S. has "long branded itself" as a leader on the values of freedom of speech and association "on the global stage". But now: 4/5
November 24, 2025 at 11:09 PM
As the letter notes, the U.S. has "long branded itself" as a leader on the values of freedom of speech and association "on the global stage". But now: 4/5
It's also grimly ironic given the State Department's attacks on foreign students and scholars for their speech and associations, as a recent letter from 59 former ambassadors & high-ranking State Dept officials to Sec Rubio & Dep Sec Landau powerfully expressed. 3/5 drive.google.com/file/d/1GIq2...
Letter to Rubio - 11.17.2025
drive.google.com
November 24, 2025 at 11:09 PM
It's also grimly ironic given the State Department's attacks on foreign students and scholars for their speech and associations, as a recent letter from 59 former ambassadors & high-ranking State Dept officials to Sec Rubio & Dep Sec Landau powerfully expressed. 3/5 drive.google.com/file/d/1GIq2...
...in light of the U.S.'s unprecedented boycott of its own evaluation via the U.N. Universal Periodic Review, the twice-a-decade process in which all U.N. member states' human rights records are evaluated. 2/5 apnews.com/article/unit...
US skips human rights review by UN body as countries appeal for its return next year
The United States on Friday snubbed a U.N. body charged with keeping tabs on the human rights records of all its member countries, on orders of the Trump administration — which has turned its back on ...
apnews.com
November 24, 2025 at 11:09 PM
...in light of the U.S.'s unprecedented boycott of its own evaluation via the U.N. Universal Periodic Review, the twice-a-decade process in which all U.N. member states' human rights records are evaluated. 2/5 apnews.com/article/unit...
Oh no - I hope you have gotten good treatment and have a fast recovery!
November 21, 2025 at 3:39 AM
Oh no - I hope you have gotten good treatment and have a fast recovery!
Data fusion tools may look like the future of policing - but their dangers are far too great without robust protections for privacy, civil rights, and civil liberties. Without those in place, they simply should not be deployed. 23/23
November 20, 2025 at 9:51 PM
Data fusion tools may look like the future of policing - but their dangers are far too great without robust protections for privacy, civil rights, and civil liberties. Without those in place, they simply should not be deployed. 23/23
Just like officers aren't allowed to use a gun without proper training, they shouldn't use high-impact AI systems without proper training either. And ongoing oversight, auditing, and compliance measures are a must. 22/23
November 20, 2025 at 9:51 PM
Just like officers aren't allowed to use a gun without proper training, they shouldn't use high-impact AI systems without proper training either. And ongoing oversight, auditing, and compliance measures are a must. 22/23
Depts should also do impact assessments that explain why the tool is being used, how it will be used, what the risks are & how they'll be mitigated, and whether the risks outweigh the benefits. One critical mitigation: police must not rely solely on an AI output to justify taking an action. 21/23
November 20, 2025 at 9:51 PM
Depts should also do impact assessments that explain why the tool is being used, how it will be used, what the risks are & how they'll be mitigated, and whether the risks outweigh the benefits. One critical mitigation: police must not rely solely on an AI output to justify taking an action. 21/23
Data fusion systems should be presumptively categorized as "high impact", with their use disclosed. They should be tested - ideally by an independent body - before deployment to be sure they actually work. If the department can't explain how a tool reaches a conclusion, it shouldn't be used. 20/23
November 20, 2025 at 9:51 PM
Data fusion systems should be presumptively categorized as "high impact", with their use disclosed. They should be tested - ideally by an independent body - before deployment to be sure they actually work. If the department can't explain how a tool reaches a conclusion, it shouldn't be used. 20/23
So what needs to be done? Luckily, police departments don't have to start from scratch - the White House's Office of Management and Budget has developed guidance on "high-impact" AI use cases" that can serve as a model. 19/23 www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/u...
www.whitehouse.gov
November 20, 2025 at 9:51 PM
So what needs to be done? Luckily, police departments don't have to start from scratch - the White House's Office of Management and Budget has developed guidance on "high-impact" AI use cases" that can serve as a model. 19/23 www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/u...
Finally, police depts chronically fail to provide a public accounting of their high-powered tech tools. And when info does come out, it often shows that the programs are a lot less effective than promised. Vendors may block transparency too, and AI itself is a veritable black box. 18/23
November 20, 2025 at 9:51 PM
Finally, police depts chronically fail to provide a public accounting of their high-powered tech tools. And when info does come out, it often shows that the programs are a lot less effective than promised. Vendors may block transparency too, and AI itself is a veritable black box. 18/23
Law enforcement's history of monitoring & collecting intel on protestors can be weaponized too; data fusion systems can combine intel reports or social media data with a range of other info to help create profiles & map out relationships between protest movements, organizations, or activists. 17/23
November 20, 2025 at 9:51 PM
Law enforcement's history of monitoring & collecting intel on protestors can be weaponized too; data fusion systems can combine intel reports or social media data with a range of other info to help create profiles & map out relationships between protest movements, organizations, or activists. 17/23
In fact, a blockbuster article out today details how Customs and Border Protection has built a nationwide surveillance system that relies heavily on license plate reader data - some likely acquired from private companies and local law enforcement agencies. 16/23 apnews.com/article/immi...
Border Patrol is monitoring US drivers and detaining those with 'suspicious' travel patterns
The U.S. Border Patrol is monitoring millions of American drivers nationwide in a secretive program to identify and detain people whose travel patterns it deems suspicious.
apnews.com
November 20, 2025 at 9:51 PM
In fact, a blockbuster article out today details how Customs and Border Protection has built a nationwide surveillance system that relies heavily on license plate reader data - some likely acquired from private companies and local law enforcement agencies. 16/23 apnews.com/article/immi...
...while others have been conducting searches in Flock's LPR database for immigration-related investigations for the federal govt. Data fusion tools will supersize the amount of data available from a single access point, making people even easier to track. 15/23 www.404media.co/ice-taps-int...
ICE Taps into Nationwide AI-Enabled Camera Network, Data Shows
Flock's automatic license plate reader (ALPR) cameras are in more than 5,000 communities around the U.S. Local police are doing lookups in the nationwide system for ICE.
www.404media.co
November 20, 2025 at 9:51 PM
...while others have been conducting searches in Flock's LPR database for immigration-related investigations for the federal govt. Data fusion tools will supersize the amount of data available from a single access point, making people even easier to track. 15/23 www.404media.co/ice-taps-int...
One police dept used Flock's license plate reader system to pursue a woman suspected of having an abortion... 14/23 www.404media.co/police-said-...
Police Said They Surveilled Woman Who Had an Abortion for Her 'Safety.' Court Records Show They Considered Charging Her With a Crime
Court records show that the narrative Flock and a Texas Sheriff's Office has told the public isn't the whole story, and that police were conducting a 'death investigation' into the abortion.
www.404media.co
November 20, 2025 at 9:51 PM
One police dept used Flock's license plate reader system to pursue a woman suspected of having an abortion... 14/23 www.404media.co/police-said-...
For ex., Flock's Nova can correlate a person's vehicle info with loads of other data, from public records to social media profiles to the extensive personal data held by private data brokers, creating profiles on them and even on people they're regularly nearby. 13/23 www.404media.co/license-plat...
License Plate Reader Company Flock Is Building a Massive People Lookup Tool, Leak Shows
Flock, which has license plate readers (LPRs) all around the country, wants police to be able to “jump from LPR to person,” according to leaked audio obtained by 404 Media.
www.404media.co
November 20, 2025 at 9:51 PM
For ex., Flock's Nova can correlate a person's vehicle info with loads of other data, from public records to social media profiles to the extensive personal data held by private data brokers, creating profiles on them and even on people they're regularly nearby. 13/23 www.404media.co/license-plat...
These tools will pose privacy risks as well, expanding law enforcement's ability to target people and analyze their movements, habits, associations, and other personal data to draw conclusions about them. 12/23
November 20, 2025 at 9:51 PM
These tools will pose privacy risks as well, expanding law enforcement's ability to target people and analyze their movements, habits, associations, and other personal data to draw conclusions about them. 12/23
And even in the best case scenario, where each individual data stream has a relatively small error rate, the risk of false positives can magnify considerably when all those data streams are combined - which is exactly what data fusion tools promise to do. 11/23
November 20, 2025 at 9:51 PM
And even in the best case scenario, where each individual data stream has a relatively small error rate, the risk of false positives can magnify considerably when all those data streams are combined - which is exactly what data fusion tools promise to do. 11/23
These tools - despite their sophistication - also incorporate notoriously inaccurate sentiment and content analysis features which often struggle to interpret irony, satire, humor, and slang, or to identify hate speech or harassment. Here's one example: 10/23 www.aclu.org/news/privacy...
Will ChatGPT Revolutionize Surveillance? | ACLU
Everybody’s talking about ChatGPT’s amazing ability to write, but its ability to read may be just as significant.
www.aclu.org
November 20, 2025 at 9:51 PM
These tools - despite their sophistication - also incorporate notoriously inaccurate sentiment and content analysis features which often struggle to interpret irony, satire, humor, and slang, or to identify hate speech or harassment. Here's one example: 10/23 www.aclu.org/news/privacy...
Today's data fusion is much more sophisticated than yesterday's predictive policing. One vendor advertises it uses AI to do risk scoring, but using AI will make it almost impossible to understand WHY it reached a particular conclusion or made a recommendation. 9/23 engage.cognyte.com/s/cf37ccd9/?...
engage.cognyte.com
November 20, 2025 at 9:51 PM
Today's data fusion is much more sophisticated than yesterday's predictive policing. One vendor advertises it uses AI to do risk scoring, but using AI will make it almost impossible to understand WHY it reached a particular conclusion or made a recommendation. 9/23 engage.cognyte.com/s/cf37ccd9/?...
Inaccurate data is a problem too. An LAPD IG audit found "significant inconsistencies" in data going into LAPD's (now inactive) predictive policing program, and half the people it flagged had few if any ties to arrests for the predicted crimes. 8/23 www.lapdpolicecom.lacity.org/031219/BPC_1...
www.lapdpolicecom.lacity.org
November 20, 2025 at 9:51 PM
Inaccurate data is a problem too. An LAPD IG audit found "significant inconsistencies" in data going into LAPD's (now inactive) predictive policing program, and half the people it flagged had few if any ties to arrests for the predicted crimes. 8/23 www.lapdpolicecom.lacity.org/031219/BPC_1...