LAPD used controversial social media tool to monitor Gaza protests: Report

• The Los Angeles Police Department reportedly used a social media surveillance tool to monitor Gaza protests. The tool called Dataminir, scanned social media platforms flagging over 50 protests, some before they occurred.
• Critics argue that the tool raises privacy and civil rights concerns, claiming it infringes on First Amendment rights.
• The service has faced past criticism for similar actions during the Black Lives Matter protests.

---

Full Story

A controversial social media surveillance tool has been helping the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) monitor Gaza protests. Dataminr provided real-time alerts to the LAPD, including information on planned protests across the United States, according to records obtained by news outlet, the Intercept, which span October 2023 to April 2024.

The Intercept reported the company scoured social media platforms like Twitter (now X), Snapchat and Telegram to track protest-related content, flagging over 50 protests, with at least a dozen warnings before events occurred. 

On at least one occasion, the records show a Dataminr employee contacted the LAPD directly to inform officers of a protest being planned that apparently hadn’t been picked up by the company’s automated scanning.

It’s not clear whether any of these notifications impacted the LAPD’s response to the wave of pro-Palestine protests over the last two years, leading to hundreds of arrests.

Several of the protests were reported to be “peaceful.” 

Is Dataminr’s process legal?

Dataminer argues its process is legal because it operates using publicly available data on social media.

However, the service raises privacy and civil rights concerns, with critics arguing this kind of surveillance infringes on First Amendment rights and may deter people from participating in protests due to the fear of government monitoring.

Dataminr also faced accusations of providing law enforcement with an unfair advantage, giving them access to information that an ordinary user couldn’t easily find.

Dataminr gathered information during BLM protests

The company has been involved in similar surveillance of other protests, such as Black Lives Matter, following the killing of George Floyd, which raised similar questions.

The ACLU of Minnesota criticized Twitter and Dataminr in 2020.

“These actions aid surveillance and risk exposing people to investigations, watchlists, and state violence for calling attention to injustice and exercising their first amendment rights.”

ACLU of Minnesota

Dataminr’s notifications have also been known to turn up false positives.

Records show multiple tweets by upset Taylor Swift fans aimed at Ticketmaster were forwarded to the LAPD as “L.A. threats and disruptions.”

Neither the LAPD nor Dataminr have responded to the Intercept’s report.