Nowadays, nearly everything we depend on has the ability to collect information about us, including our smartphones, computers, cars, and even household appliances. Whether we like it or not, this data often ends up in the hands of marketing giants who utilize it to flood us with targeted advertisements. However, a recently declassified report has shed light on the fact that advertisers are not the sole purchasers of our data—the US government is also a significant customer.
In January 2022, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) finalized a report focused on "commercially-available information" (CAI). The ODNI defines CAI as data that can be acquired not only by the government but also by companies and the general public. While not all CAI originates from our devices, a substantial portion of it does.
The ODNI acknowledges that the "volume and sensitivity" of CAI has dramatically increased in recent years due to advancements in digital technology.
The ODNI's document explicitly highlights two key points regarding CAI. Firstly, it reveals that CAI can be de-anonymized and linked to individual US residents, even if the seller has attempted to anonymize it. Secondly, the ODNI recognizes CAI as a valuable intelligence source, which is occasionally employed for undisclosed missions outlined in the report.
The Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) has issued a 48-page report warning about the extensive collection of data on Americans, which is not fully understood or avoided by most individuals. In the past, gathering intelligence on Americans required targeted and justified actions, but now it has become much easier to gather sensitive information on 'nearly everyone'.
This includes personal details such as race, ethnicity, political opinions, religious beliefs, genetic data, biometrics, health information, and even details about an individual's sex life or sexual orientation. The report cites cases where these categories of information have been misused, such as the outing of a gay Catholic priest and the unwarranted inspection of Muslim prayer app data. Particularly sensitive data includes mental health information, travel records, attorney-client information, persistent location information, and library records.
The ODNI acknowledges that the exact purposes for collecting this data are not fully known, even though some have been identified (though redacted in the report). In response, the ODNI calls for a better understanding of how the intelligence community utilizes the data collected through what it terms "Computer and Analytic Information (CAI)."
Furthermore, the ODNI wants to investigate whether the identified purposes justify the potential privacy violations involved in the collection of CAI. The report mentions that CAI is considered valuable for intelligence purposes and may have applications in building and training artificial intelligence models, although the specific objectives of these models are not disclosed. However, the ODNI report fails to provide a comprehensive justification for the extensive data collection practices carried out by the United States.
The ODNI's report aims to advocate for improved cataloging, standardization, and privacy protection within the intelligence community's 18 entities. It argues for formal procurement documentation that tracks the arrival of sensitive information, as well as standards and procedures to verify the quality, acquisition logistics, legality, and intended use of data from vendors.
The report also calls for stricter approval requirements throughout the procurement process. Whether these measures are meant to genuinely reassure or merely appease Americans remains uncertain since the ODNI has already acknowledged the value of sensitive personal data as a tool for the government. Regardless of the regulations put in place, there is still the possibility that such data could be utilized in ways that make individuals deeply uncomfortable.
