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Privacy

The DHS Privacy Office is responsible for evaluating the Department programs, systems, and initiatives for potential privacy impacts, and providing strategies to reduce the privacy impact.

  • Sample Letters from AllClear ID

    The following are a sample of the letters that have been mailed by AllClear ID.  Please note, not every letter is the same, depending on the circumstances.  The letter will have the name of Catherine Emerson, representing DHS, but will not be signed. If you have questions about the letter you received, please contact your component Privacy Officer.

  • DHS/CBP/PIA-026 Biometric Exit Mobile Program

    The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Office of Field Operations (OFO) Planning, Program Analysis, and Evaluation (PPAE) uses wireless handheld CBP Biometric Exit Mobile (BE-Mobile) devices to capture biometric and biographic information in support of its border security mission.

  • Department of Homeland Security Federal Information Sharing Environment Privacy and Civil Liberties Policy

    Department of Homeland Security Federal Information Sharing Environment Privacy and Civil Liberties Policy

  • Privacy Compliance Reviews for the Media Monitoring Initiative

    Privacy Compliance Reviews for the Media Monitoring Initiative

  • DHS-OPS-PIA-004 Publicly Available Social Media Monitoring and Situational Awareness Initiative

    The Office of Operations Coordination and Planning (OPS), National Operations Center (NOC) leads the Publicly Available Social Media Monitoring and Situational Awareness Initiative (Initiative). The Initiative assists the Department of Homeland Security and its Components fulfill their statutory responsibility under Section 515 of the Homeland Security Act  to provide situational awareness and establish a common operating picture for the Federal Government, and for those state, local, and tribal governments, as appropriate. OPS is updating this Privacy Impact Assessment (PIA) to address the privacy impact of using geospatial information offered by mobile media to enhance situational awareness.

  • DHS/ALL/PIA-032 DHS Information Sharing Environment Suspicious Activity Reporting Initiative

    This Privacy Impact Assessment (PIA) updates a previously published PIA describing the Nationwide Suspicious Activity Reporting Initiative, a key aspect of the federal Information Sharing Environment (ISE) created by Congress in the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004. The NSI supports intergovernmental sharing of “official documentation of observed behavior reasonably indicative of pre-operational planning related to terrorism or other criminal activity [related to terrorism],” known as Suspicious Activity Reports (SAR). As a result of the NSI’s successes, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) will continue the effort and transition the management to a jointly managed program. DHS is conducting this PIA update because SARs contain personally identifiable information (PII).

  • Forensic Analysis of Electronic Media

    Digital evidence examination is the forensic acquisition and analysis of computer hard drives, thumb drives, cell phones, and any other data storage device obtained in the course of an investigation. The Office of Homeland Security Investigations within Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) uses a variety of electronic tools to conduct criminal investigations that encompass analyzing digital media. ICE uses these tools and technologies to analyze the volume of stored digital evidence data given its rate of growth and ubiquity. ICE is conducting this Privacy Impact Assessment (PIA) because these electronic tools may be used to collect and maintain personally identifiable information (PII).

  • DHS-ICE-PIA-041 National Intellectual Property Rights Coordination Center

    DHS-ICE-PIA-041 National Intellectual Property Rights Coordination Center

  • S&T FOIA Logs

    This log contains the incoming Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests to the Department of Homeland Security Science and Technology Directorate (S&T)  for each fiscal year.

  • DHS Science and Technology Laboratory Fact Sheet

    DHS S&T Laboratory Fact Sheet: created the Chemical Security Analysis Center (CSAC) in 2006 to assess and identify vulnerabilities.