According to budget documents revealed by journalist Ken Klippenstein, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is piloting the development of a smart glasses prototype.
The official objective is to provide ICE agents (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) the ability to identify “ illegal aliens ” from a distance.
The project, supervised by the DHS Directorate of Science and Technology, aims to put into service by September 2027which could radically transform field operations.
What exactly is the “ICE Glasses” project?
The project “ICE Glasses“consists of developing an operational prototype of smart glasses for DHS officers. And these devices are not simple on-board cameras.
They are designed as a augmented reality interfacea heads-up display that will give agents a “ real-time access to information and biometric identification capabilities in the field ».
The idea is to allow an agent to make eye contact with a person and almost instantly obtain a match if they appear on one of the many watch lists.
THE connected glasses will pulse federal databases, analyzing not only faces but also other unique markers such as a person’s gait, to trace an identity.
How does this technology work in practice?
These glasses are based on an infrastructure of biometrics massive, built since the September 11 attacks. They will connect to colossal databases likeABI (Automated Biometric Identification System), which today contains nearly 75 million biometric records.
This well-oiled machine, capable of processing tens of thousands of submissions per day, has until now been powered by portable devices, such as the HIDEused by the military in Iraq or Afghanistan.
Illustration IA
The big change of “ICE Glasses” is to make this passive and continuous data collection. We move from a deliberate action (scanning a print, taking a photo) to “non-cooperative” capture, where the data is collected without consent or even knowledge of the subject.
This system is the direct heir of the technologies developed to track terrorists, but this time it is intended for American streets. THE federal agents will no longer need a dedicated device: their own eyes will become the scanning tool.
Why is this project raising so much concern?
The main fear is that of a drift towards surveillance generalized. A DHS lawyer, speaking on condition of anonymity, was very clear: “ This could be presented as a way to seek out illegal immigrants on the streets, but the reality is that such an advance affects all Americans, especially protesters. ».
Algorithms and technology are equally applicable to migration control and political surveillance. The shift from a technology of war to a tool of domestic control is a fragile frontier.
This perspective recalls the Google Glass debacle in the early 2010s, when the public so violently rejected the idea of being constantly filmed that their wearers were nicknamed the ” glassholes ».
Here, the stakes are increased tenfold, because it is not a simple recording but a identification active coupled with government watch lists.
Although Congress has been notified of the project, the silence from political leaders is currently deafening, leaving the field open to a technology that could nevertheless redefine the very notion of anonymity in public space.
