The identification of 6,000 Asylum seekers was accidentally made public by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement through their website earlier this week. Identifying information includes the names, locations, and immigration information for a list of individuals. A document was posted to the ice.gov website in error, where it was available publicly for an estimated five hours.

Once the problem was identified, the organization quickly removed the document. They acknowledge the breach of policy and are taking steps to identify how it happened and prevent the issue from recurring. Individuals included in the asylum seekers’ document are being contacted directly by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement  (ICE). Individuals who downloaded the information are being contacted by ICE to ensure the information is fully deleted from computers.

The disclosure of any personal information is strictly prohibited by established federal regulations, per the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. The regulations are noted in the Privacy Act, which outlines required activities by all federal agencies to protect against this type of data release.

The individual asylum cases for those who had their information shared will be reviewed and considered if the data breach affects the processing of their asylum case.

If you have questions about your asylum case or any other immigration-related issue, please contact us. We work with our clients to ensure they get the proper guidance for their particular situations. See how we can help you.