The Department of Homeland Security’s chief privacy officer has greenlit a Secret Service surveillance system that’s fueling law enforcement operations, according to a privacy impact assessment published.
The platform, called Helix, aggregates surveillance video, facial recognition tech and license plate data coming from security cameras at protected locations and existing image repositories. The Secret Service uses the tool to monitor sensitive areas, such as the White House complex and around the Capitol, for potential threats.
As required by law, federal agencies must conduct a privacy impact assessment when an agency intends to identify U.S. citizens in conjunction with other data elements, according to DHS’s website. But they also typically occur before an agency develops or procures IT systems that collect, maintain or disseminate information from or about members of the public.
“HELIX uses information in identifiable form (including video of individuals, facial images and biometric templates, license plate numbers, and associated time and location metadata) from multiple source systems and applies advanced analytics to link and analyze that data in a single environment, increasing the privacy impact beyond the original collections and necessitating a detailed assessment of risks and mitigations,” the Secret Service said in its explanation of why a PIA was necessary.
A Secret Service spokesperson said the system itself is not necessarily a “new” addition to the DHS unit’s portfolio, but the agency is “continually adapting, modernizing, and integrating new technology.”
“The U.S. Secret Service uses a variety of advanced systems at our protective sites in Washington, DC, including the White House complex and in the Naval Observatory,” the spokesperson said in an emailed statement to FedScoop. “We are unable to discuss specific means and methods used to conduct our protective operations.”
The Secret Service recognized a number of risks associated with its Helix platform in the published PIA. Many of those risks are “partially mitigated,” per the DHS component. But privacy advocates aren’t as convinced.
As outlined in the assessment, the Helix system has access to surveillance footage featuring members of the general public present on “adjacent public streets, sidewalks, parks and entrances/exits.”
