DHS Analyzes Financial Activity to Identify Potential Targets for Police
The Department of Homeland Security has been operating a program called Predictive Intelligence Targeting Teams (PITT) to analyze Americans' financial activity and flag patterns associated with narcotics trafficking.
The program, which operates under the Border Patrol's Spokane Sector in Washington and Laredo Sector in Texas, uses bulk financial data access and predictive analytics to identify potential targets for local law enforcement.
In one documented case, a licensed cannabis farmer in Montana named Kyle Olson was flagged by an analyst for patterns associated with drug-related behavior. The intelligence was shared with the Montana Highway Patrol, which stopped Olson and charged him with DUI.
The PITT program has raised concerns about civil liberties, as it combines bulk financial data access, predictive analytics, and the use of parallel construction to justify police stops. This technique involves using classified or questionable intelligence to identify targets, then constructing a separate basis for the stop or investigation that is independent of the underlying evidence.