Microsoft said it does not believe U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is using its technology to conduct mass surveillance of civilians, responding to concerns raised in a recent media report.
The company confirmed it provides ICE and the Department of Homeland Security with cloud-based productivity and collaboration tools through partners. However, Microsoft stressed that its policies prohibit the use of its technology for mass civilian surveillance, News.Az reports, citing Reuters.
The statement follows a report claiming ICE significantly expanded its reliance on Microsoft’s Azure cloud platform last year as the agency intensified arrest and deportation operations. According to the report, ICE more than tripled the amount of data stored in Azure in the six months leading up to January 2026.
The report also suggested ICE appeared to use various Microsoft productivity and AI-driven tools to search and analyze the data it maintains in the cloud.
Microsoft said its terms of service do not allow its technology to be used for mass surveillance and added that it has no indication ICE is engaged in such activity. At the same time, the company called for clearer legal boundaries from U.S. lawmakers, the executive branch, and the courts regarding how emerging technologies can be used by law enforcement agencies.
ICE declined to comment on specific investigative tools or techniques but said it uses various technologies to support the arrest of criminal suspects.
The issue comes amid heightened scrutiny of U.S. immigration enforcement under President Donald Trump’s second-term crackdown, which has drawn criticism from human rights groups while the administration argues the measures are necessary to strengthen domestic security and curb illegal immigration.
Microsoft has previously faced internal and external pressure over government use of its technology. In 2025, the company said it had disabled certain services used by an Israeli military unit after preliminary evidence supported media reports alleging mass surveillance activities.
The latest exchange underscores the growing tension between rapidly advancing cloud and AI capabilities and the demand for stronger oversight of how such technologies are deployed by governments.
