DOJ Cites Defunct Facial Recognition Tool in ICE Mask Ban Lawsuits

The Trump administration has filed lawsuits against at least five states and Philadelphia over laws requiring Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers to show their faces during raids and wear individual identifiers. But a key piece of evidence in those federal complaints—a facial recognition tool called ICESpy—appears to be largely nonfunctional and virtually unused, according to its creator.

A nine-year-old database

In complaints filed against New York, Virginia, Connecticut, New Jersey, and Philadelphia, Department of Justice attorneys argue that requiring ICE officers to be identifiable would endanger them. The filings specifically cite ICESpy, claiming people use it to run photos of agents through facial recognition software that searches social media and "doxing sites."

The reality is far different, according to artist Kyle McDonald, who created ICESpy. The project relies on data from people who self-identified as ICE employees on LinkedIn nearly a decade ago in 2018. The database contains just over 700 entries, with the most common title being "assistant chief counsel." Only 39 people listed had "deportation officer" in their title, with most entries representing administrative, legal, or executive roles rather than field agents.

ICE announced in January that it had more than doubled its workforce from 10,000 to 22,000 agents and officers in recent months. None of those additional personnel would appear in ICESpy's 2018 dataset.

"The idea that someone could use a site like ICESpy and find an active ICE deportation officer in 2026 is absurd," McDonald told WIRED, which first reported these details.

Minimal usage, poor results

Activity logs reviewed by WIRED show ICESpy received only 84 page views during one week in early July. Just two face-match attempts were made during that period, and McDonald said both produced results so poor they couldn't possibly match anyone in his dataset.

The DOJ also referenced ICE List, a separate accountability initiative that tracks ICE personnel and incidents. That site's maintainer, Dominick Skinner, said a small group does attempt facial recognition searches, but their success has been "overblown" and the site relies primarily on manual research rather than automated tools.

DOJ spokesperson Kiersten Pels said individuals have used facial recognition and doxing tools to identify and harass federal officers, and that such sites "frequently change domains, shut down, and reappear under new names." However, the department did not provide concrete examples of protesters using ICESpy to identify agents, and specific numbers were absent from the complaints.

Why it matters

The federal government's reliance on an outdated, barely-used tool to justify blocking state accountability laws raises questions about the strength of its legal arguments. Meanwhile, the absence of body cameras and identification requirements has created real obstacles to investigating recent fatal shootings by ICE officers in Maine and Texas. State lawmakers argue their laws address legitimate concerns about oversight and constitutional rights, while federal attorneys contend officer safety must take precedence. The outcome of these lawsuits could determine whether states can impose accountability measures on federal immigration enforcement within their borders.

Virginia state senator Saddam Salim, whose state's law was paused by a federal injunction, said the DOJ "should seek accountability for the actions of poorly trained ICE agents" rather than challenging reasonable restrictions. Connecticut state senator Bob Duff, who worked on his state's challenged law, emphasized that states have "a right and responsibility to protect our own residents."

These details were first reported by WIRED.