Bondi and Noem sued for ‘strong-arming’ tech companies to target ICE monitoring
This sets a dangerous precedent.
A civil rights organization is suing the Trump administration for pressuring major technology companies to remove information tracking Immigration and Customs Enforcement, arguing Washington violated free speech rights.
The Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression, a free speech absolutist group, is representing two plaintiffs who filed the lawsuit against the Departments of Homeland Security and Justice in an Illinois district court on Wednesday, alleging the Trump administration engaged in illegal censorship to control information.
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and Attorney General Pam Bondi undermined constitutional protections when they “strong-armed” Apple and Facebook into removing ICE activity monitoring from company platforms, according to the group’s lawsuit. After pressure from the Trump administration, Apple removed Eyes Up and similar apps that allowed users to report sightings of ICE officials in real-time last fall, while Facebook removed a comparable account with over 84,000 members.
“As we’ve seen across the country, especially in Minneapolis, citizen videos have informed discussion and debate about ICE’s operations and tactics,” FIRE attorney Colin McDonell said in a statement. “The right to share information about our government is essential to a free society. If someone goes out and commits a crime, they can and should be punished for their actions. But in a free society, we don’t punish protected speech.”
The Trump administration argues that ICE trackers exist to endanger law enforcement and has framed them as a direct threat to federal agents, suggesting that, as such, they pose a violation of the law.
FIRE believes that the apps are protected under the First Amendment.
“The First Amendment protects the right to discuss, record, and criticize what law enforcement does in public,” the organization said.
The controversy with Apple has largely centered on ICEBlock, which allowed users to report the locations of immigration enforcement officers. In early October 2025, Apple removed the app from its App Store after Bondi said she reached out to Apple “demanding” that the company do so. At the time, Bondi claimed that the app did not fall under protected speech. Noem said the app “sure looks like” an obstruction of justice and that those guilty of obstruction of justice would “be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.” And Noem began working with the attorney general to see if the administration could prosecute …
This sets a dangerous precedent.
A civil rights organization is suing the Trump administration for pressuring major technology companies to remove information tracking Immigration and Customs Enforcement, arguing Washington violated free speech rights.
The Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression, a free speech absolutist group, is representing two plaintiffs who filed the lawsuit against the Departments of Homeland Security and Justice in an Illinois district court on Wednesday, alleging the Trump administration engaged in illegal censorship to control information.
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and Attorney General Pam Bondi undermined constitutional protections when they “strong-armed” Apple and Facebook into removing ICE activity monitoring from company platforms, according to the group’s lawsuit. After pressure from the Trump administration, Apple removed Eyes Up and similar apps that allowed users to report sightings of ICE officials in real-time last fall, while Facebook removed a comparable account with over 84,000 members.
“As we’ve seen across the country, especially in Minneapolis, citizen videos have informed discussion and debate about ICE’s operations and tactics,” FIRE attorney Colin McDonell said in a statement. “The right to share information about our government is essential to a free society. If someone goes out and commits a crime, they can and should be punished for their actions. But in a free society, we don’t punish protected speech.”
The Trump administration argues that ICE trackers exist to endanger law enforcement and has framed them as a direct threat to federal agents, suggesting that, as such, they pose a violation of the law.
FIRE believes that the apps are protected under the First Amendment.
“The First Amendment protects the right to discuss, record, and criticize what law enforcement does in public,” the organization said.
The controversy with Apple has largely centered on ICEBlock, which allowed users to report the locations of immigration enforcement officers. In early October 2025, Apple removed the app from its App Store after Bondi said she reached out to Apple “demanding” that the company do so. At the time, Bondi claimed that the app did not fall under protected speech. Noem said the app “sure looks like” an obstruction of justice and that those guilty of obstruction of justice would “be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.” And Noem began working with the attorney general to see if the administration could prosecute …
Bondi and Noem sued for ‘strong-arming’ tech companies to target ICE monitoring
This sets a dangerous precedent.
A civil rights organization is suing the Trump administration for pressuring major technology companies to remove information tracking Immigration and Customs Enforcement, arguing Washington violated free speech rights.
The Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression, a free speech absolutist group, is representing two plaintiffs who filed the lawsuit against the Departments of Homeland Security and Justice in an Illinois district court on Wednesday, alleging the Trump administration engaged in illegal censorship to control information.
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and Attorney General Pam Bondi undermined constitutional protections when they “strong-armed” Apple and Facebook into removing ICE activity monitoring from company platforms, according to the group’s lawsuit. After pressure from the Trump administration, Apple removed Eyes Up and similar apps that allowed users to report sightings of ICE officials in real-time last fall, while Facebook removed a comparable account with over 84,000 members.
“As we’ve seen across the country, especially in Minneapolis, citizen videos have informed discussion and debate about ICE’s operations and tactics,” FIRE attorney Colin McDonell said in a statement. “The right to share information about our government is essential to a free society. If someone goes out and commits a crime, they can and should be punished for their actions. But in a free society, we don’t punish protected speech.”
The Trump administration argues that ICE trackers exist to endanger law enforcement and has framed them as a direct threat to federal agents, suggesting that, as such, they pose a violation of the law.
FIRE believes that the apps are protected under the First Amendment.
“The First Amendment protects the right to discuss, record, and criticize what law enforcement does in public,” the organization said.
The controversy with Apple has largely centered on ICEBlock, which allowed users to report the locations of immigration enforcement officers. In early October 2025, Apple removed the app from its App Store after Bondi said she reached out to Apple “demanding” that the company do so. At the time, Bondi claimed that the app did not fall under protected speech. Noem said the app “sure looks like” an obstruction of justice and that those guilty of obstruction of justice would “be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.” And Noem began working with the attorney general to see if the administration could prosecute …
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