【】
U.S. Customs and Border Protection somehow just managed to get even more handsy when it comes to your most intimate data.
Starting today, the branch of the Department of Homeland Security will start collecting DNA from people it detains at the U.S. border. And yes, according to a privacy impact assessment published by DHS, kids as young as 14 are subject to the new program.
The agency, asserts the DHS, will only collect DNA from people who are in custody and "subject to fingerprinting." This means that, should you be fortunate enough to breeze through the border as a U.S. citizen, your DNA will not be added to the FBI-maintained database where the records will end up.
However, should you be snagged in the nightmare that is CBP detention — like other U.S. citizens were just this past weekend — you won't be so lucky.

The collection of DNA at the border starts off as a pilot program, notes the above-linked privacy impact assessment, and includes five phases we will theoretically be subjected to over the course of the next three years. The Associated Press reports that the program will kick off in Detroit and at the Eagle Pass, Texas, port of entry.
It is slated to eventually span the entire nation.
The government is aware of various privacy risks associated with its plan, which are detailed within its assessment. Some of which, it should be noted, are rather chilling.
"There is a risk that individuals whose DNA sample is collected while the individuals are children will not be aware that their DNA profile will remain on file with FBI in perpetuity," notes the impact assessment.
And there's more. "There is a risk of over collection of information," continues the document, "particularly from young children, who could not have committed any crimes for which to match against."
Thankfully, the document assures us, "CBP does not categorically fingerprint individuals under the age of 14, and therefore will not be collecting DNA samples, but has the discretion to do so in potentially criminal situations."
There, don't you feel better already? Well, according to American Civili Liberties Union attorney Stephen Kang, you shouldn't.
SEE ALSO:Racist Border Patrol Facebook group confirms all your worst suspicionsKang told the Associated Press that he wondered if the government is creating "a DNA bank of immigrants that have come through custody for no clear reason," and added that "it raises a lot of very serious, practical concerns, I think, and real questions about coercion."
It definitely does.
TopicsCybersecurityPrivacy
相关文章

This company is hiring someone just to drink all day
For the non-Don Drapers among us, drinking at work is a far-off fantasy. But UK company ILoveGin wan2026-03-19
Sarah Jessica Parker has endorsed Cynthia Nixon's run for New York governor
A Sex and the City 3may never happen thanks to the beef between certain actresses, but we can sleep2026-03-19
Minnesota politician writes bill to ban 'Bachelor' star Arie from state
After the shocking conclusion of the 22nd season of The Bachelor, the titular bachelor Arie Luyendyk2026-03-19
Talking to machines will be an even bigger deal than the iPhone, says Gary Vaynerchuk
"Technology is exposing us, not changing us.” Gary Vaynerchuk is on a mission to spread his ca2026-03-19
Amazon's Echo made controlling music with your voice easy-peasy, but its sound quality could be a lo2026-03-19
We asked astronauts if they think aliens exist. Here's what they said
Jeff Hoffman has floated in the vacuum of space. He’s looked down at our planet from above, se2026-03-19


最新评论