ICE says it purchased Paragon’s spyware for use in drug trafficking cases

The acting head of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement told lawmakers that he purchased and used spyware made by Paragon Solutions in drug trafficking cases, according to a letter seen by TechCrunch.

Acting ICE Director Todd Lyons wrote in the letter to three members of Congress that he approved the agency’s Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) criminal investigation unit using “sophisticated technological tools” to counter foreign terrorist organizations’ “burgeoning exploitation of encrypted communications platforms,” ​​referring to spyware.

Law enforcement’s inability to access encrypted data is often cited as justification for their need to use computer and mobile spyware in major criminal cases, as they can seize a person’s data directly from their devices. Critics and human rights advocates have long pointed to the growing list of journalists, politicians and members of civil society whose phones have been hacked by governments using commercial spyware.

In the letter, Lyons said ICE’s use of the spyware “would comply with constitutional requirements,” and that he “certified that HSI’s operational use of the identified tool does not pose significant security or counterintelligence risks, or significant risks of improper use by a foreign government or foreign person.”

Bloomberg first reported ICE’s letter to lawmakers.

In 2024, ICE signed a contract with US-Israeli spyware company Paragon Solutions, a deal that was immediately put on hold by the Biden administration to see if it complied with an executive order restricting US agencies from using spyware that could be used to target Americans abroad or violate human rights.

In September 2025, ICE lifted the ban and reactivated the contract. However, it is not yet clear whether ICE planned to use Paragon’s spyware.

The spyware maker has been caught up in a widespread scandal in Italy, where it was revealed that journalists and pro-immigration activists were targeted with Paragon’s Graphite spyware last year. In response, Paragon banned Italian intelligence agencies from using its spyware tools.

When reached for comment, Democratic Rep. Summer Lee, one of the lawmakers who requested information from ICE, told TechCrunch that the agency is now moving forward “using invasive spyware technology within the United States.”

“Instead of responding to the serious constitutional and civil concerns we have raised, DHS is asking the public to accept vague assurances and fear-based justifications,” the lawmaker added.

“The people most at risk, including immigrants, Black and brown communities, journalists, organizers, and anyone who speaks out against government abuses, deserve more than secrecy and deflection from an agency with a long record of abuses and abuses,” Lee said.

Paragon and ICE did not respond to a request for comment and questions from TechCrunch about the agency’s use of spyware.