Palantir Is Spearhead For Trump’s Surveillance State: Robert Reich

In Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings, a “palantir” is a seeing stone that can be used to distort truth and present selective visions of reality.

Thirteen former Palantir employees signed a letter this month urging the corporation to stop its endeavors with Trump. I Photo: New York Stock Exchange Facebook

During the War of the Rings, a palantir falls under the control of Sauron, who uses it to manipulate and deceive, Robert Reich wrote in his newsletter.

Palantir Technologies bears a striking similarity. It sells an AI-based data platform that allows its users—among them, military and law enforcement agencies—to analyze personal data, including social media profiles, personal information, and physical characteristics.

These are used to identify and surveil individuals.

In March, Trump signed an executive order requiring all agencies and departments of the federal government to share data on Americans. To get the job done, Trump chose Palantir Technologies, founded by Peter Thiel.

Palantir is now combining personal data on every American gleaned from the Department of Homeland Security, Defense Department, Department of Health and Human Services, Social Security Administration, and Internal Revenue Service—including bank account numbers and medical claims.

Will the Trump regime use this super-database to advance Trump’s political agenda, find and detain immigrants, and punish critics?

Will it make it easier for Trump to spy on and target his ever-growing list of enemies and other Americans?

Thirteen former Palantir employees signed a letter this month urging the corporation to stop its endeavors with Trump. Linda Xia, a signee who was a Palantir engineer until last year, said the problem was not with the technology but with how the Trump administration intended to use it.

“Combining all that data, even with the noblest of intentions, significantly increases the risk of misuse,” she said. Palantir’s work on such a project could be “dangerous,” Ohio Rep. Warren Davidson told the Semafor news site.

“When you start combining all those data points on an individual into one database, it really essentially creates a digital ID. And it’s a power that history says will eventually be abused.”