A coalition of Democratic lawmakers are asking tech giant Palantir to turn over details of their contracts with the Trump administration amid reports the data company has been given lucrative contracts that could allow it to assemble a database on Americans.
The New York Times reported last month that Palantir is in discussions with numerous government agencies for use of its technology that analyzes data, including the Social Security Administration and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).
According to the lawmakers, the company “is enabling and profiting from serious violations of Federal law by the Trump Administration, which is amassing troves of data on Americans to create a government-wide, searchable ‘mega-database’ containing the sensitive taxpayer data of American citizens.”
According to the Times, Palantir has taken in more than $113 million in federal government spending under President Trump, as its Foundry data and analytics technology is already in use at the Department of Homeland Security and the Department of Health and Human Services.
“The unprecedented possibility of a searchable, ‘mega-database’ of tax returns and other data that will potentially be shared with or accessed by other federal agencies is a surveillance nightmare that raises a host of legal concerns, not least that it will make it significantly easier for Donald Trump’s Administration to spy on and target his growing list of enemies and other Americans,” Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) wrote in a letter signed by six other colleagues.
“This potential ‘mega-database’ at the IRS and elsewhere also raises myriad potential violations of privacy laws designed to strictly limit those who can access the tax return records of individuals and businesses.”
The letter goes on to cite prohibitions in both the Internal Revenue Code and the Privacy Act of 1974, noting that tax returns can only be access for limited purposes while privacy laws also limit information sharing between agencies.
Palantir has said it is building no such database.
“Palantir is not building a master database. Palantir is neither conducting nor enabling mass surveillance of American citizens. No amount of parroting of this false accusation will make it true. We are committed to America, regardless of which party the American people have voted into office. This should be obvious given our continuous work with the government for nearly 20 years,” the company said in a statement.
It cast the request as being based on “an incorrect and speculative article.”
And in a swift response letter to the lawmakers that was also shared on the social platform X, it said it takes privacy seriously and is aware it must comply with “legal and ethical boundaries.”
“Palantir’s software is built at every stage to uphold, not undermine, legal and regulatory protections as well as the ethics and standards that help institutions govern the appropriate uses of powerful technologies. Americans are entitled to better government. We object very strongly to The New York Times, or anyone, portraying technology and privacy as opposing forces; we believe that, done well, they reinforce each other,” the letter states.
Wyden shot back at the letter, saying the company dodged their questions.
“Palantir is terrified of legitimate questions from members of Congress, so their expensive flacks and high-priced lawyers have produced a letter full of fake moral indignation and empty of facts or answers. They deny accusations we did not make, and refuse responsibility for what Donald Trump’s administration does with the products they build for his political appointees,” the senator said in a statement.
“It is Exhibit A for why Americans are demanding real transparency about Palantir’s contracts and what the Trump administration is doing with Palantir’s technology.”
Lawmakers have asked for a suite of information from the company, including a breakdown of all government contacts, whether they’ve sought assurances on any legal liability or offered to cover legal fees for any of its workers.
“Does the company have a ‘red line’ for potential violations of human rights, U.S. law or international law by the Trump Administration that would result in Palantir terminating its services for the U.S. government?” the lawmakers asked.
Updated at 5:48 p.m. EDT
