Stop the FBI’s rapid DNA catalog expansion!
Petition to Congress:
We urge you to block increased funding for the FBI’s expanded DNA catalog. It threatens the privacy rights of all Americans.
The FBI is collecting people’s DNA at an alarming rate and now it’s looking to double the budget for its DNA catalog. This rapid expansion is due, in part, to changes made under the Trump administration.1
“When we’re talking about rapid expansion like this, it’s getting us ever closer to a universal DNA database,” an attorney at the American Civil Liberties Union said. That means every single one of us could eventually be the target of federal law enforcement’s efforts to collect and catalog DNA. This is clearly a danger to the privacy rights of every single American.
The FBI has amassed 21.7 million DNA profiles, equal to about 7% of the population. And, now, the FBI has requested doubling its budget for DNA processing to over $100 million because of the rapid influx of DNA samples brought on by the Trump administration.2 We have to block this funding before the FBI creates a universal DNA database of the entire country.
Sign the petition: Tell Congress to block FBI funding for rapid expansion of its DNA catalog.
The FBI’s program is also able to expand because of frightening new DNA technology called environmental DNA, which actually allows for DNA to be collected from ambient settings like wastewater or air.3 Just by breathing, you could be releasing DNA that can be traced back to you.
“When surveillance technology gets cheaper, easier, faster to use, it tends to get used more — often in ways that are troubling. I think the civil liberties implications here are significant,” said the ACLU attorney.4 The risks here, with federal law enforcement having intimate information on more and more people, are stark for everyone in this country.
Authorities used to only be able to collect and catalog DNA for a small category of serious crimes. Now, local, state, and even federal law enforcement are able to collect DNA in a ballooning number of scenarios — leading to a slippery slope in who could have their DNA processed and stored by the FBI. Congress has to put a stop to this rapid expansion.
Add your name: Tell Congress no more money for expanded DNA processing!
Sources:
- The Intercept, “FBI Hoovering Up DNA At A Pace That Rivals China, Holds 21 Million Samples And Counting,” August 29, 2023.
- Ibid.
- Ibid.
- Ibid.