A Chicago company has marketed a tool using text, photos and videos gleaned from major social media companies to aid law enforcement surveillance of protesters, civil liberties activists say.
The company, called Geofeedia, used data from Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, as well as nine other social media networks, to let users search for social media content in a specific location, as opposed to searching by words or hashtags that would be less likely to reveal an exact location.
Geofeedia marketed its abilities to law enforcement agencies and has signed up more than 500 such clients, according to an email obtained by the American Civil Liberties Union. In one document the ACLU posted, as part of a report released Tuesday, the company appears to point to how officials in Baltimore, with Geofeedia's help, were able to monitor and respond to the violent protests that broke out after Freddie Gray died in police custody in April 2015.
Geofeedia appears to have used programs that Facebook, Twitter and others offered that let app makers or advertising companies create third-party tools. Facebook, Twitter and Instagram say they have cut off Geofeedia's access to their information.
But civil liberties advocates criticised the companies for lax oversight and challenged them to create better mechanisms to monitor how their data is being used.
The company, called Geofeedia, used data from Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, as well as nine other social media networks, to let users search for social media content in a specific location, as opposed to searching by words or hashtags that would be less likely to reveal an exact location.
Geofeedia marketed its abilities to law enforcement agencies and has signed up more than 500 such clients, according to an email obtained by the American Civil Liberties Union. In one document the ACLU posted, as part of a report released Tuesday, the company appears to point to how officials in Baltimore, with Geofeedia's help, were able to monitor and respond to the violent protests that broke out after Freddie Gray died in police custody in April 2015.
Geofeedia appears to have used programs that Facebook, Twitter and others offered that let app makers or advertising companies create third-party tools. Facebook, Twitter and Instagram say they have cut off Geofeedia's access to their information.
But civil liberties advocates criticised the companies for lax oversight and challenged them to create better mechanisms to monitor how their data is being used.