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profferguson.bsky.social
Andrew Guthrie Ferguson
@profferguson.bsky.social
9.5K followers 2.8K following 430 posts

Law Prof. GWU, Tech & Justice. Author: “Your Data Will Be Used Against You,” “The Rise of Big Data Policing,” “Why Jury Duty Matters,” and “The Law of Law School.”

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Andrew Guthrie Ferguson is a professor of law at American University Washington College of Law.

Source: Wikipedia
Law 32%
Political science 29%
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profferguson.bsky.social
Andrew Guthrie Ferguson @profferguson.bsky.social · 1d
www.404media.co/cops-used-fl...
Cops Used Flock to Monitor No Kings Protests Around the Country
A massive cache of Flock lookups collated by the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) shows as many as 50 federal, state, and local agencies used Flock during protests over the last year.
www.404media.co

Reposted by Andrew Guthrie Ferguson

jaystanley.bsky.social
Jay Stanley @jaystanley.bsky.social · 1d
Perspective on AP report revealing how DHS uses AI and mass surveillance across the nation to target, detain, and seize money from innocent drivers
www.aclu.org/news/privacy...
New Report Highlights How CBP and Border Patrol are Becoming a Repressive Internal Intelligence Agency | ACLU
AP report reveals how the agency uses AI and mass surveillance across the nation to target, detain, and seize money from innocent drivers
www.aclu.org

Reposted by Andrew Guthrie Ferguson, Dunlap

davidjbier.bsky.social
David Bier @davidjbier.bsky.social · 3d
Border Patrol has a surveillance program tracking millions of drivers by name and then gets them pulled over for lies. Listen to the officer admit that he is careful to conceal the reason for the stop so if it ever gets questioned, no one will know that there was NO PROBABLE CAUSE.

Reposted by Cas Mudde, Shannon Vallor, Nina Jankowicz , and 26 more

chrismurphyct.bsky.social
Chris Murphy @chrismurphyct.bsky.social · 5d
The President of the United States just called for Democratic members of Congress to be executed. "HANG THEM", he posted.

If you're a person of influence in this country and you haven't picked a side, maybe now would be the time to pick a fucking side.

Reposted by Andrew Guthrie Ferguson

fbajak.bsky.social
Frank Bajak @fbajak.bsky.social · 5d
Big Brother exclusive: US Customs and Border Patrol has leveraged license-plate readers to become a domestic intelligence agency, mostly hiding its role and paying local law enforcement to run plate readers. It has been doing this for years, saturating Texas especially.

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

Reposted by Andrew Guthrie Ferguson

mtokson.bsky.social
Matthew Tokson @mtokson.bsky.social · 5d
Excellent article - "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." CBP then tells local police to pretextually stop these drivers.
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

Reposted by Andrew Guthrie Ferguson

thomasbrewster.bsky.social
Thomas Brewster @thomasbrewster.bsky.social · 5d
Nice from @byrontau.bsky.social - a reminder that local police as well as federal have been using this stuff for years www.forbes.com/sites/thomas...

profferguson.bsky.social
Andrew Guthrie Ferguson @profferguson.bsky.social · 5d
Major, must read article, on how license plate readers are becoming a nationwide tracking tool. 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

profferguson.bsky.social
Andrew Guthrie Ferguson @profferguson.bsky.social · 6d
www.oregonlive.com/washingtonco...
Some Oregon cities, but not all, are turning off plate-scanning cameras over ICE fears
Eugene, Woodburn and Springfield have paused their use of Flock automatic license plate readers.
www.oregonlive.com

Reposted by Meredith Broussard, Anna O. Law, Kim L. Scheppele , and 4 more

404media.co
404 Media @404media.co · 7d
NEW: US airlines (Delta, United, American, etc) will shut down a program in which it sold hundreds of millions of your flight records to government agencies, including ICE, FBI, ATF, more. Comes after intense lawmaker-pressure and 404 Media's months-long reporting
www.404media.co/airlines-wil...
Airlines Will Shut Down Program That Sold Your Flights Records to Government
The move comes after intense pressure from lawmakers and 404 Media’s months-long reporting about the airline industry's data selling practices.
www.404media.co

profferguson.bsky.social
Andrew Guthrie Ferguson @profferguson.bsky.social · 8d
Teaching about the jury today and reading “Why Jury Duty Matters” again.

It is a book that should be at the center of civic and democracy debates. Perhaps today more than when it was written, it offers a path forward. #Books

Reposted by Paul M. Schwartz

profferguson.bsky.social
Andrew Guthrie Ferguson @profferguson.bsky.social · 12d
Your Data Will Be Used Against You.
www.theverge.com/2024/9/24/24...
Don’t ever hand your phone to the cops
Even if you’ve got nothing to hide.
www.theverge.com

Reposted by Andrew Guthrie Ferguson

dell.bsky.social
dell cameron @dell.bsky.social · 13d
NEW: DHS secretly obtained Chicago police data on 900 residents accused of gang ties. It was quietly deleted after intelligence officers violated rules against domestic spying.

The handoff came well after city inspectors formally announced CPD's gang data was deeply flawed and infected w/ bias.
DHS Kept Chicago Police Records for Months in Violation of Domestic Espionage Rules
The Department of Homeland Security collected data on Chicago residents accused of gang ties to test if police files could feed an FBI watchlist. Months passed before anyone noticed it wasn’t deleted.
www.wired.com

profferguson.bsky.social
Andrew Guthrie Ferguson @profferguson.bsky.social · 15d
@nilsgilman.bsky.social

Interesting piece about a legal privilege for AI communications. In my forthcoming book, I propose a broader legal privilege for digital communications (not just AI).

Doctors, Lawyers and Priests Keep Secrets. Why Not Your Chatbot? www.nytimes.com/2025/11/10/o...
Opinion | Doctors, Lawyers and Priests Keep Secrets. Why Not Your Chatbot?
www.nytimes.com

profferguson.bsky.social
Andrew Guthrie Ferguson @profferguson.bsky.social · 19d
Anyone know if this is true? 75 years seems pretty long for any evidence retention.

“DHS requires evidentiary data to be held for 75 years, potentially evidentiary data for three years and non-evidentiary data for 180 days.”

www.politico.com/sponsored/20...
Sponsored Content: Body-Worn Cameras Build Transparency and Trust for Law Enforcement Across the Nation
Sponsored Content: Body-Worn Cameras Build Transparency and Trust for Law Enforcement Across the Nation
www.politico.com

profferguson.bsky.social
Andrew Guthrie Ferguson @profferguson.bsky.social · 20d
www.wired.com/story/welcom...
Zohran Mamdani Just Inherited the NYPD Surveillance State
In addition to affordability, New York City’s mayor-elect will be forced to reckon with the NYPD’s sweeping mass surveillance operations.
www.wired.com

profferguson.bsky.social
Andrew Guthrie Ferguson @profferguson.bsky.social · 22d
Thank you for your poetic blurb. And as you wait to buy my book in March you should all read “Police and the Empire City.”
mguariglia.bsky.social Matthew Guariglia @mguariglia.bsky.social · 22d
I must have been in some sort of mood when I sent in this blurb for @profferguson.bsky.social's important new book

Your Data Will Be Used Against You: Policing in the Age of Self-Surveillance

nyupress.org/978147983828...
"As Virgil guided Dante through Hell, so too does Ferguson guide us through the world of digital informants and the inadequate legal regime that enables it. Your Data Will Be Used Against You is essential and a bright flashing warning sign articulating the vulnerability we all live with, the inability of the current legal system to protect us, and the loaded gun this system represents to would-be tyrants whether they wear a badge or make the laws." ~Matthew Guariglia, author of Police and the Empire City: Race and the Origins of Modern Policing in New York

Reposted by Andrew Guthrie Ferguson

mguariglia.bsky.social
Matthew Guariglia @mguariglia.bsky.social · 22d
I must have been in some sort of mood when I sent in this blurb for @profferguson.bsky.social's important new book

Your Data Will Be Used Against You: Policing in the Age of Self-Surveillance

nyupress.org/978147983828...
"As Virgil guided Dante through Hell, so too does Ferguson guide us through the world of digital informants and the inadequate legal regime that enables it. Your Data Will Be Used Against You is essential and a bright flashing warning sign articulating the vulnerability we all live with, the inability of the current legal system to protect us, and the loaded gun this system represents to would-be tyrants whether they wear a badge or make the laws." ~Matthew Guariglia, author of Police and the Empire City: Race and the Origins of Modern Policing in New York

profferguson.bsky.social
Andrew Guthrie Ferguson @profferguson.bsky.social · 25d
Coolest Halloween trick or treat. Giving a book-loving kid a signed book by an award-winning author. Talk about knocking on the right door.

Reposted by Andrew Guthrie Ferguson

josephcox.bsky.social
Joseph Cox @josephcox.bsky.social · 25d
You can see the document for yourself here: www.documentcloud.org/documents/26...

We don't paywall articles based on public records like this. And we try to publish as many records as we can, like here. You can support 404 Media by becoming a paid subscriber here: 404media.co/membership/

Reposted by Juan Cole, David R. Miller, Andrew Guthrie Ferguson

404media.co
404 Media @404media.co · 25d
NEW: you can't refuse to be scanned by ICE's new facial recognition app, according to internal DHS document 404 Media obtained. Photos taken by the app are stored for 15 years, including of U.S. citizens. We've published the full document here: www.404media.co/you-cant-ref...
You Can't Refuse To Be Scanned by ICE's Facial Recognition App, DHS Document Says
Photos captured by Mobile Fortify will be stored for 15 years, regardless of immigration or citizenship status, the document says.
www.404media.co

Reposted by Kim L. Scheppele, Joe R. Feagin, John Horgan , and 5 more

josephcox.bsky.social
Joseph Cox @josephcox.bsky.social · 25d
New from 404 Media: you can't refuse to be scanned by ICE's new facial recognition app, according to internal DHS document I obtained. Photos captured by the app are stored for 15 years, including U.S. citizens. We've seen officers scanning faces w/ phones on streets

www.404media.co/you-cant-ref...
You Can't Refuse To Be Scanned by ICE's Facial Recognition App, DHS Document Says
Photos captured by Mobile Fortify will be stored for 15 years, regardless of immigration or citizenship status, the document says.
www.404media.co

profferguson.bsky.social
Andrew Guthrie Ferguson @profferguson.bsky.social · 26d
Rare story of community rejecting surveillance creep.

www.govtech.com/public-safet...
Hillsborough, N.C., Cancels Surveillance Camera Contract
The town Board of Commissioners approved a two-year pact to install 10 surveillance cameras, but subsequently canceled it. Staff and board members expressed privacy concerns around data sharing.
www.govtech.com

Reposted by Shannon Vallor, Anna O. Law, Colin F. Camerer , and 27 more

josephcox.bsky.social
Joseph Cox @josephcox.bsky.social · 27d
New incredible detail here: ICE says a match in its facial recognition app Mobile Fortify is a "definitive" determination of a person's status, and that this overrides birth certificates. This is an app ICE is using in the field to scan people

www.404media.co/ice-and-cbp-...
Ranking member of the House Homeland Security Committee Bennie G. Thompson said in a statement “Mobile Fortify is a dangerous tool in the hands of ICE, and it puts American citizens at risk of detention and even deportation.” He also said “ICE officials have told us that an apparent biometric match by Mobile Fortify is a ‘definitive’ determination of a person’s status and that an ICE officer may ignore evidence of American citizenship—including a birth certificate—if the app says the person is an alien. ICE using a mobile biometrics app in ways its developers at CBP never intended or tested is a frightening, repugnant, and unconstitutional attack on Americans’ rights and freedoms.”

Reposted by Anna O. Law, Brendan Nyhan, Jennifer A. Richeson , and 13 more

josephcox.bsky.social
Joseph Cox @josephcox.bsky.social · 27d
New: Videos show ICE/CBP agents are scanning peoples' faces on the street to verify citizenship. ICE has tool to instantly look up unprecedented number of databases with just a photo

“I’m an American citizen so leave me alone”

“Alright, we just got to verify that”

www.404media.co/ice-and-cbp-...
ICE and CBP Agents Are Scanning Peoples’ Faces on the Street To Verify Citizenship
Videos on social media show officers from ICE and CBP using facial recognition technology on people in the field. One expert described the practice as “pure dystopian creep.”
www.404media.co

Reposted by Paul M. Schwartz

profferguson.bsky.social
Andrew Guthrie Ferguson @profferguson.bsky.social · 28d
Your Data Will Be Used Against You
stribs.bsky.social Robert Stribley @stribs.bsky.social · 28d
New from me: A recent report about robot vacuum cleaners sending maps of people’s homes to manufacturers is just the latest in a series of stories about privacy issues with these machines :: Friend link - stribs.medium.com/is-your-vacu...
Is Your Vacuum Cleaner Spying On You?
A recent report about robot vacuum cleaners sending maps of people’s homes to manufacturers is just the latest in a series of stories…
stribs.medium.com

Reposted by Andrew Guthrie Ferguson

stribs.bsky.social
Robert Stribley @stribs.bsky.social · 28d
New from me: A recent report about robot vacuum cleaners sending maps of people’s homes to manufacturers is just the latest in a series of stories about privacy issues with these machines :: Friend link - stribs.medium.com/is-your-vacu...
Is Your Vacuum Cleaner Spying On You?
A recent report about robot vacuum cleaners sending maps of people’s homes to manufacturers is just the latest in a series of stories…
stribs.medium.com

profferguson.bsky.social
Andrew Guthrie Ferguson @profferguson.bsky.social · 28d
denverite.com/2025/10/27/b...
Police used Flock cameras to accuse a Denver woman of package theft. She had her own evidence
"Like I said, nothing gets in or out of the town without us knowing."
denverite.com

profferguson.bsky.social
Andrew Guthrie Ferguson @profferguson.bsky.social · 29d
Smart glasses that protect against surveillance v. Smart glasses that are surveillance. What a world.
404media.co 404 Media @404media.co · 29d
NEW: we tested Zenni's anti-facial recognition glasses coating. "ID Guard" adds a pink sheen to the surface of the glasses that reflects the infrared light used by some facial recognition cameras.

www.404media.co/zennis-anti-...
Zenni’s Anti-Facial Recognition Glasses are Eyewear for Our Paranoid Age
These anti-facial recognition glasses technically work, but won’t save you from our surveillance dystopia.
www.404media.co

Reposted by Andrew Guthrie Ferguson

404media.co
404 Media @404media.co · 29d
NEW: we tested Zenni's anti-facial recognition glasses coating. "ID Guard" adds a pink sheen to the surface of the glasses that reflects the infrared light used by some facial recognition cameras.

www.404media.co/zennis-anti-...
Zenni’s Anti-Facial Recognition Glasses are Eyewear for Our Paranoid Age
These anti-facial recognition glasses technically work, but won’t save you from our surveillance dystopia.
www.404media.co