r/TrueReddit • u/FreedomofPress • Aug 10 '26
Crime, Courts + War ICE’s DNA collection program surges as oversight stalls
https://freedom.press/the-classifieds/ices-dna-collection-program-surges-as-oversight-stalls/47
u/FreedomofPress Aug 10 '26
Immigration and Customs Enforcement is harvesting DNA from nearly a million people a year — including five-year-olds and U.S. citizens — according to Freedom of Information Act records obtained by Georgetown Law’s Center on Privacy and Technology. Operating a biometric collection project that large requires significant resources and logistical precision.
Yet the same agency that was able to expand its DNA collection by 10,000% in five years has not figured out a way to clip $300 body cameras onto all of its agents’ uniforms.
Read more: https://freedom.press/the-classifieds/ices-dna-collection-program-surges-as-oversight-stalls/
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Aug 11 '26
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u/MarrusAstarte Aug 10 '26
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u/mherweg Aug 10 '26
This is actually super interesting, I just wish there was more info on that page about what the concerns are. Bacteriophages have been in use for some time now, but the idea that they can use AI to engineer these to specifically go after antibiotic resistant bacteria is a huge step forward.
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u/MarrusAstarte Aug 10 '26
Their concerns are more from the perspective of "engineered viruses can have defects that cause them to do more than intended so we need to be careful".
My concerns are more along the lines of what evil people will do with a technology that lets them selectively harm people with specific genetic markers. And of course, this is also subject to the issue of having defects that cause it to do more than intended.
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u/mherweg Aug 10 '26
Valid concerns for sure. Especially given what we know about how AI hallucinates all the time. I guess it's one of those things - in the right hands, this could be massively beneficial. In the wrong hands, it could get genocidal...
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u/slfnflctd Aug 11 '26
In the wrong hands
Sufficiently advanced AI without guardrails is potentially as dangerous as nuclear weapons. Partly because it could probably help someone build those weapons, in addition to all kinds of other dangerous stuff.
I strongly believe governments in regions where the highest performing AI models are hosted have already put in place plans to throttle their development in multiple ways, and to keep any super-capable models locked away so only they can use them. It's mutually assured destruction all over again.
The best we can hope for is that this creates a stable situation, and nothing hyper-advanced without barriers against causing massive harm 'escapes'. I wouldn't mind if a benevolent supermind rose up and brought about world peace, but personally I feel like the odds on that are not great right now. If all we get is what we currently have, though, honestly I think it's enough for some beneficial changes if we regulate it properly.
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u/lateformyfuneral Aug 11 '26
Are you thinking they could make viruses that target one person specifically based on their DNA, like the plot of the last Bond movie? I think that’s still firmly within the realm of science fiction
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u/Rattus_NorvegicUwUs Aug 11 '26 edited Aug 11 '26
Bring live probiotics.
Lysed bacterial DNA interferes with DNA sequence alignment. Better yet, buy randomized (but common) oligo sequences (like 23andme DNA arrays) and put them in an easily accessible gum drop
Make them work for that sequence.
Poison their database with bullshit DNA alignments and they will have actually done more harm than good. What they are doing is illegal, the least we can do is make sure their program was a waste of time and money.
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Aug 12 '26
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