DHS making smart glasses to spy on migrants and protesters: report

The Department of Homeland Security has plans to create smart glasses that can spy on immigrants and protesters, according to a new report.

Journalist Ken Klippenstein reported on Substack, citing budget documents, that DHS is building on existing technology to create the glasses, which could record video and give agents instant access to data about someone's immigration status and other biometric data held by the federal government. Klippenstein said the project is part of DHS's goal to create a "ubiquitous surveillance" world.

"It might be portrayed as seeking to identify illegal aliens on the streets, but the reality is that a push in this direction affects all Americans, particularly protesters," a DHS attorney told Klippenstein, according to the report.

Klippenstein noted that the U.S. military used similar technology during the War on Terror. For instance, the military created its own biometric watch lists and developed the Handheld Interagency Identity Detection Equipment, which provided troops with real-time access to a person's biometric information.

"ICE Glasses eventually will do all of that in a more compact way," Klippenstein reported. "The secret recesses of the government already collect what are literally called 'non‑cooperative biometrics,' where the data is captured without a subject’s consent."

"That’s the world of ubiquitous surveillance that the Department of Homeland Security is looking to reproduce here on American soil," he added.