Jay Stanley
@jaystanley.bsky.social
Emerging technology and science for ACLU
A breakdown of the new “Mobile Fortify” face recognition program, including lists of
a) The reasons it’s problematic,
b) The vast array of data that the agencies can connect to
c) Some of the unanswered questions that remain about the program.
a) The reasons it’s problematic,
b) The vast array of data that the agencies can connect to
c) Some of the unanswered questions that remain about the program.
Face Recognition and the ‘Trump Terror’: A Marriage Made in Hell | ACLU
ICE and CBP are smashing their way not only through car windows but also through any constraints on the use of face recognition
www.aclu.org
November 13, 2025 at 4:11 PM
A breakdown of the new “Mobile Fortify” face recognition program, including lists of
a) The reasons it’s problematic,
b) The vast array of data that the agencies can connect to
c) Some of the unanswered questions that remain about the program.
a) The reasons it’s problematic,
b) The vast array of data that the agencies can connect to
c) Some of the unanswered questions that remain about the program.
Utah is the only state where political leaders are thinking through the potentially disastrous effects of the current effort to create a national digital ID through the driver's license system.
There’s Only One State That is Asking the Right Questions About Digital Identity | ACLU
A digital ID system involves value-laden choices that should be made through explicit political discussion and debate
www.aclu.org
November 7, 2025 at 6:02 PM
Utah is the only state where political leaders are thinking through the potentially disastrous effects of the current effort to create a national digital ID through the driver's license system.
Exciting news: you can now subscribe to an ACLU newsletter to keep up with with ACLU technology policy blog posts and other news! Subscribe here:
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Subscribe to the Free Future Newsletter
Subscribe to the Free Future newsletter to see the latest updates on emerging technology and science from Jay Stanley.
action.aclu.org
November 7, 2025 at 4:39 PM
Exciting news: you can now subscribe to an ACLU newsletter to keep up with with ACLU technology policy blog posts and other news! Subscribe here:
action.aclu.org/signup/free-...
action.aclu.org/signup/free-...
A bureaucratic wall is being built between Americans and the information they have a right to access
www.aclu.org/news/privacy...
www.aclu.org/news/privacy...
Digital Driver’s Licenses Threaten to Create a “Great Internet Lockdown” | ACLU
Two trends threaten the creation of an online identity infrastructure that would transform the internet
www.aclu.org
November 4, 2025 at 3:31 PM
A bureaucratic wall is being built between Americans and the information they have a right to access
www.aclu.org/news/privacy...
www.aclu.org/news/privacy...
We shouldn't get rid of police audit logs but we also shouldn't think they're worth more than they are
Surveillance Supporters Tout Police Audit Logs But They’re Not an Effective Check and Balance | ACLU
If an officer had just left the word "abortion" out of an audit log, a vital national story would never have come to light
www.aclu.org
October 31, 2025 at 5:59 PM
We shouldn't get rid of police audit logs but we also shouldn't think they're worth more than they are
Some US prisons and jails have started using non-consensual, non-removable biometric wrist straps on prisoners to monitor their pulse, blood oxygenation level, skin temperature, activity level, and location.
What does the ACLU think of this? I look at the issue in a post on our Free Future blog
What does the ACLU think of this? I look at the issue in a post on our Free Future blog
Biometric bracelets for prisoners | ACLU
Invading privacy as well as "barking up the wrong tree"
www.aclu.org
October 29, 2025 at 5:08 PM
Some US prisons and jails have started using non-consensual, non-removable biometric wrist straps on prisoners to monitor their pulse, blood oxygenation level, skin temperature, activity level, and location.
What does the ACLU think of this? I look at the issue in a post on our Free Future blog
What does the ACLU think of this? I look at the issue in a post on our Free Future blog
Appalling... apparently "military grade" AI has fallen short...
Gun-Toting Police Swarm, Handcuff Young Black Man After AI Mistakes Doritos Bag For a Gun | ACLU
Deploying AI in Inappropriate Ways Can and Does Get People Hurt
www.aclu.org
October 27, 2025 at 7:46 PM
Appalling... apparently "military grade" AI has fallen short...
News about the driver-surveillance company Flock just keeps coming in: findings from Massachusetts and Virginia, new deals with big companies, and more:
Flock Can Share Driver-Surveillance Data Even When Police Departments Opt Out, And Other Flock Developments | ACLU
The company’s default agreement with police departments grants the company license to share people’s license plate data
www.aclu.org
October 24, 2025 at 6:34 PM
News about the driver-surveillance company Flock just keeps coming in: findings from Massachusetts and Virginia, new deals with big companies, and more:
Digital driver’s licenses — now being built in many states — have a big problem that almost nobody is addressing: the threat of an explosion of ID demands from all quarters. There is a body of existing state laws that points toward a solution.
State Barcode Laws | ACLU
State regulation of who may scan barcodes from driver’s licenses and what scanners can do with the data point the way toward vital protections against abuses of digital IDs
www.aclu.org
October 17, 2025 at 4:33 PM
Digital driver’s licenses — now being built in many states — have a big problem that almost nobody is addressing: the threat of an explosion of ID demands from all quarters. There is a body of existing state laws that points toward a solution.
Generally people should have privacy from government, and the government should be an open book to the people — not the other way around.
Sweeping Ban on Drone Flights Across Chicago Looks Suspiciously Like an Attempt to Ban Press Coverage | ACLU
We can’t let government block drone photography of newsworthy events simply by claiming a need to fly their own aircraft in an area or claiming the existence of vague “security threats”
www.aclu.org
October 3, 2025 at 7:12 PM
Generally people should have privacy from government, and the government should be an open book to the people — not the other way around.
Reposted by Jay Stanley
The Practical Nomad: Edward Hasbrouck's blog
The Practical Nomad: Edward Hasbrouck's blog
hasbrouck.org
September 28, 2025 at 9:05 PM
There are a growing number of companies that are engaging in mass surveillance that could prove useful to the Trump Administration’s efforts to target immigrants. They have human rights responsibilities.
Surveillance Businesses Have Human Rights Responsibilities | ACLU
The Trump Administration's immigration abuses are human rights violations
www.aclu.org
September 22, 2025 at 2:59 PM
There are a growing number of companies that are engaging in mass surveillance that could prove useful to the Trump Administration’s efforts to target immigrants. They have human rights responsibilities.
The coming battles over being identified versus not being identified
Digital Driver’s Licenses Could Make “Surveillance Pricing” Much Easier for Companies | ACLU
The coming battles over being identified versus not being identified
www.aclu.org
September 15, 2025 at 4:10 PM
The coming battles over being identified versus not being identified
We are certainly not the ones whose power increases when companies crunch data with AI to individually set the prices they charge us.
“Surveillance Pricing” Hurts Consumers, Incentivizes More Corporate Spying on Them | ACLU
Those hurt the most are those who can least afford it
www.aclu.org
September 12, 2025 at 4:34 PM
We are certainly not the ones whose power increases when companies crunch data with AI to individually set the prices they charge us.
A look at the prospects for, and reasons to support, open source LLM models and research
www.aclu.org/news/privacy...
www.aclu.org/news/privacy...
Open vs. Closed: The Battle for the Future of Language Models | ACLU
Will Language Models Foster Freedom or Authoritarianism? (part 4 in a series)
www.aclu.org
September 9, 2025 at 4:20 PM
A look at the prospects for, and reasons to support, open source LLM models and research
www.aclu.org/news/privacy...
www.aclu.org/news/privacy...
It's not hard to imagine police departments deploying fleets of self-docking, self-navigating patrol drones over communities. We're starting to see that in the commercial space now.
Autonomous Drone Patrols Start to Become a Thing | ACLU
Edging toward police drone dystopias
www.aclu.org
September 2, 2025 at 2:41 PM
It's not hard to imagine police departments deploying fleets of self-docking, self-navigating patrol drones over communities. We're starting to see that in the commercial space now.
A look at the possible future of local AI models, and what that might mean for the question of how much of a centralizing force the technology will be.
www.aclu.org/news/privacy...
www.aclu.org/news/privacy...
What's the Future of AI Language Models as a Decentralized Technology? | ACLU
Many assume that LLMs will always be provided by big tech companies through the cloud, but is that true? (LLMs and power series part 3)
www.aclu.org
August 25, 2025 at 5:30 PM
A look at the possible future of local AI models, and what that might mean for the question of how much of a centralizing force the technology will be.
www.aclu.org/news/privacy...
www.aclu.org/news/privacy...
Policymakers are beginning to recognize that you can't count on surveilling your local residents while keeping that data out of the hands of ICE and the Trump Administration
www.aclu.org/news/privacy...
www.aclu.org/news/privacy...
I’m Hearing About More Pushback Against Flock, Fueled by Concern Over Anti-Immigrant Uses | ACLU
Policymakers are beginning to recognize that the boundaries between local surveillance and the Trump Administration are hard to maintain
www.aclu.org
August 21, 2025 at 4:58 PM
Policymakers are beginning to recognize that you can't count on surveilling your local residents while keeping that data out of the hands of ICE and the Trump Administration
www.aclu.org/news/privacy...
www.aclu.org/news/privacy...
What are the chances that the ability to train a frontier LLM will become more democratized? That's a key question in evaluating whether this tech will become yet another source of tech leverage over ordinary people.
www.aclu.org/news/racial-...
www.aclu.org/news/racial-...
Will Giant Companies Always Have a Monopoly on Top AI Models? | ACLU
Part 2 of my dive into how likely LLMs are to either centralize or distribute power
www.aclu.org
August 20, 2025 at 6:23 PM
What are the chances that the ability to train a frontier LLM will become more democratized? That's a key question in evaluating whether this tech will become yet another source of tech leverage over ordinary people.
www.aclu.org/news/racial-...
www.aclu.org/news/racial-...
There's a lot going on with Flock and license plate recognition; here's an overview of how this authoritarian technology is expanding. Latest post on @ACLU Freefuture blog
www.aclu.org/news/privacy...
www.aclu.org/news/privacy...
Flock’s Aggressive Expansions Go Far Beyond Simple Driver Surveillance | ACLU
Build it (an authoritarian tracking infrastructure) and they (expanded uses) will come
www.aclu.org
August 18, 2025 at 5:57 PM
There's a lot going on with Flock and license plate recognition; here's an overview of how this authoritarian technology is expanding. Latest post on @ACLU Freefuture blog
www.aclu.org/news/privacy...
www.aclu.org/news/privacy...
Large language models have been evolving in dramatic — and, for those who care about freedom — suspenseful ways.
Many Are Focused on the Wrong Questions When it Comes to AI | ACLU
Do large language models have an inherent politics?
www.aclu.org
August 14, 2025 at 8:59 PM
Large language models have been evolving in dramatic — and, for those who care about freedom — suspenseful ways.
My first post on my new newsletter: If your local police start using Flock, they could target you just because some algorithm has decided your movement patterns suggest criminality, under new AI capabilities that the company has created.
ourfreefuture.substack.com/p/surveillan...
ourfreefuture.substack.com/p/surveillan...
July 23, 2025 at 5:13 PM
My first post on my new newsletter: If your local police start using Flock, they could target you just because some algorithm has decided your movement patterns suggest criminality, under new AI capabilities that the company has created.
ourfreefuture.substack.com/p/surveillan...
ourfreefuture.substack.com/p/surveillan...
Dear all, today I'm announcing "Free Future" a newsletter/blog that I'm launching on Substack, where I'll be publishing my writing for the ACLU on privacy and technology policy topics. I hope you will find it of interest!
ourfreefuture.substack.com/about
ourfreefuture.substack.com/about
About - Free Future
Who will technology serve?
Technology and Privacy by Jay Stanley of the ACLU. Click to read Free Future, a Substack publication. Launched 6 days ago.
ourfreefuture.substack.com
July 23, 2025 at 5:07 PM
Dear all, today I'm announcing "Free Future" a newsletter/blog that I'm launching on Substack, where I'll be publishing my writing for the ACLU on privacy and technology policy topics. I hope you will find it of interest!
ourfreefuture.substack.com/about
ourfreefuture.substack.com/about
Reposted by Jay Stanley
Noteworthy endorsement from the American Enterprise Institute's Jim Harper of the ACLU's efforts to require that smartphone digital-ID systems operate on a decentralized basis--no location tracking, no phoning home, no kill-switch functionality--and support authorization short of identification.
www.aei.org
June 25, 2025 at 3:34 PM
Noteworthy endorsement from the American Enterprise Institute's Jim Harper of the ACLU's efforts to require that smartphone digital-ID systems operate on a decentralized basis--no location tracking, no phoning home, no kill-switch functionality--and support authorization short of identification.
Reposted by Jay Stanley
I think Harper is correct in endorsing the work of folks like @jaystanley.bsky.social. He's also literally walked the walk on these issues, having accepted and completed a challenge in 2006 to fly from SFO to D.C. without showing any ID to airport screeners.
The Great No-ID Airport Challenge
In which millionaire privacy activist John Gilmore challenges a DHS adviser to attempt a cross-country plane ride without showing ID. Wired News referees the gentlemen's wager. Ryan Singel reports fro...
www.wired.com
June 25, 2025 at 3:34 PM
I think Harper is correct in endorsing the work of folks like @jaystanley.bsky.social. He's also literally walked the walk on these issues, having accepted and completed a challenge in 2006 to fly from SFO to D.C. without showing any ID to airport screeners.