The Trump administration has expanded Palantir’s work with the government, spreading the company’s technology — which could easily merge data on Americans — throughout agencies.

cross-posted from: https://lemm.ee/post/65405816

In March, President Trump signed an executive order calling for the federal government to share data across agencies, raising questions over whether he might compile a master list of personal information on Americans that could give him untold surveillance power.

Some current and former Palantir employees have been unnerved by the work. The company risks becoming the face of Mr. Trump’s political agenda, four employees said, and could be vulnerable if data on Americans is breached or hacked. Several tried to distance the company from the efforts, saying any decisions about a merged database of personal information rest with Mr. Trump and not the firm.

This month, 13 former employees signed a letter urging Palantir to stop its endeavors with Mr. Trump. Linda Xia, a signee who was a Palantir engineer until last year, said the problem was not with the company’s technology but with how the Trump administration intended to use it.

"Data that is collected for one reason should not be repurposed for other uses,” Ms. Xia said. “Combining all that data, even with the noblest of intentions, significantly increases the risk of misuse.”

The goal of uniting data on Americans has been quietly discussed by Palantir engineers, employees said, adding that they were worried about collecting so much sensitive information in one place. The company’s security practices are only as good as the people using them, they said. They characterized some DOGE employees as sloppy on security, such as not following protocols in how personal devices were used.

Ms. Xia said Palantir employees were increasingly worried about reputational damage to the company because of its work with the Trump administration. There is growing debate within the company about its federal contracts, she said.

“Current employees are discussing the implications of their work and raising questions internally,” she said, adding that some employees have left after disagreements over the company’s work with the Trump administration.

    • Septimaeus@infosec.pubEnglish
      0·
      10 days ago

      Honestly, a lot of our content, especially the posts calling for mass murder of Republican voters (most of which appear to still be up) might make traceable prior use of lemmy an easy way to get added to a watchlist.

      • muusemuuse@lemm.eeEnglish
        0·
        10 days ago

        While true it’s also not all that useful. If a handful of people express that, it’s actionable. If huge swaths of your population do, it means something else entirely.

        • Septimaeus@infosec.pubEnglish
          0·
          9 days ago

          For sure. I’m just pointing it out so Americans on here are eyes-open in their participation. They’re likely already on a list.

          But also, I don’t think killing pedestrian voters is of any strategic benefit. I report it when I see it, even if it’s rarely taken down.

          • muusemuuse@lemm.eeEnglish
            1·
            9 days ago

            I know I’m likely on a list somewhere. I firmly believe I’m going to be killed by this sundowning Nazi in the next few years too. I’ve tried to make plans and get out of this sinking ship but I’ve not been successful. I’m going to die here and it’s likely to happen pretty soon.

            So if that’s going to happen anyway, where is my motivation to comply with anything this fascist wants? Fuck it. He’s going to have to kill me.