President Donald Trump and Attorney General Pam Bondi announced Thursday that the administration is considering new regulatory or legal action against mobile applications that track Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers, as concerns grow over officer safety amid a surge in anti-ICE protests and violence.
Speaking alongside Trump at a press conference with senior White House officials and law enforcement leaders, Bondi sharply criticized what she called “dangerous technology” that exposes the locations and movements of federal immigration officers.
“These organizations, President Trump, are coming in, and there are apps to track our federal law enforcement officers,” Bondi said. “It jeopardizes their lives — where they’re going to be, their location. And that’s unacceptable.”
Pressed on whether the administration supports efforts to regulate or ban such platforms, Bondi’s answer was unequivocal: “Yes, yes, yes.”
While it remains unclear exactly what a federal crackdown might look like, Bondi suggested that the Justice Department is already coordinating with technology companies to curb the use of such tools. “We’ve actually been working really well with the tech companies who have been cooperating because they don’t want our law enforcement officers to get injured,” she said.
Officials within the Justice Department have previously argued that apps designed to reveal the locations of ICE agents could constitute “obstruction of justice,” depending on their use.
President Trump echoed Bondi’s concerns, emphasizing the need to protect officers’ identities and endorsing the continued use of masks by ICE personnel.
“I didn’t have a big view on the masks,” Trump said. “But I now understand why they should wear masks. I think it’s very dangerous for them not to. They can do whatever they want — but when you look at what’s happening, it’s pretty dangerous.”
Turning to Bondi during the briefing, Trump added, “You’re coming down on that very hard, right?” to which Bondi nodded in agreement.
The debate over ICE-tracking tools has intensified as deportation operations have ramped up under Trump’s renewed immigration enforcement agenda. Several apps and online platforms — many run by activist networks — claim to alert immigrant communities to nearby ICE activity.
Federal officials, however, argue that these apps have contributed to a spike in attacks and doxing attempts targeting federal agents. According to ICE’s Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO), the suspect in a September attack on an ICE facility in Dallas had searched for and used several tracking applications prior to the incident.
“The shooter used the ICE tracking apps,” acting ERO head Marcos Charles said following the attack. “Anyone who creates or distributes these apps designed to spot, track, and locate ICE officers knows the danger they’re creating for law enforcement.”
Not everyone agrees with the administration’s stance. Some Democratic lawmakers have defended the existence of such tools, framing them as community safety measures rather than threats to law enforcement.
House Oversight Committee ranking member Robert Garcia (D-Calif.) said earlier this week that his committee plans to host a “master ICE tracker” on its website to compile verified reports of ICE activity from community sources.
Bondi responded sharply to Garcia’s announcement, warning that the Justice Department will not tolerate violence against federal agents. “We will prosecute any person who physically assaults our agents,” she said.
