"I thought my ordeal with U.S. immigration authorities was over a year ago, when I left the country, crossing into Canada at Niagara Falls. By that point, the Trump administration had effectively turned federal power against international students like me."
"Weeks later, in Geneva, Switzerland, I received what looked like a routine email from Google. It informed me that the company had already handed over my account data to the Department of Homeland Security."
"I believed that once I left U.S. territory, I had also left the reach of its authorities. I was wrong."
Amandla Thomas-Johnson, a Ph.D. candidate, faced immigration scrutiny after attending a pro-Palestinian protest. In April 2025, ICE requested his data from Google, which complied without notifying him. This action breached Google's promise to inform users before sharing data with law enforcement. The Electronic Frontier Foundation filed complaints against Google for deceptive trade practices. Thomas-Johnson, who believed he was safe after leaving the U.S., discovered that his data had been handed over while he was abroad, highlighting concerns about privacy and government overreach.
Read at Electronic Frontier Foundation
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