Law Enforcement Tracked Activists Using Twitter, Facebook And Instagram Data
Recode/via screenshot / Via youtube.com
According to a report from the American Civil Liberties Union, law enforcement officials across the country used special feeds of raw data, including location information, from Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook to track and monitor racial protests.
The ACLU claims the social data used by law enforcement was provided by Geofeedia, a social media monitoring company that provides information to hundreds of local police departments. According to public records requests obtained by the ACLU, Geofeedia was granted special access to data feeds from the major social networks, including: access to the Instagram API that includes any location information; access to Facebook's Topic Feed API, which allowed Geofeedia to monitor public posts "including hashtags, events, or specific places;" and searchable access to a database of public tweets from Twitter.
All three social networks attempted to stop or, at least restrict Geofeedia's access to data after the the ACLU reported its knowledge of the partnerships. Facebook and Instagram (which is owned by Facebook) cut off access to the topic feed and the Instagram API. According to a report from The Washington Post, this week Twitter ordered Geofeedia to stop accessing its public database with a cease and desist letter. The company said today that it would block Geofeedia's access to its public feed.
The ACLU report raises concerns over how social media data can be coopted for the purposes of surveillance and stifling civil unrest. Emails obtained by the ACLU show a Geofeedia representative boasting to a law enforcement official that their tools "covered Ferguson/Mike Brown nationally with great success."
The report also presents a different face for Facebook and Twitter, which have taken numerous public stands in support of Black Lives Matter and activism intended to address police violence and racial inequality.
Geofeedia and Facebook have not yet responded to requests for comment. Twitter declined to provide one.
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