As states around the world seek to expand their surveillance capabilities and "harness the power of data" to deliver public services, they are often tempted to use the services of private technology companies – through public-private partnerships (‘PPPs’). These partnerships often evade key transparency and accountability mechanisms, impacting human rights and public sector decision-making in opaque ways. This is why we call for all such partnerships to be subject to strict PPP Safeguards. We also have developed a Handbook to help others investigate and challenge PPPs.
Our Public Private Surveillance Partnerships Tracker collects news pieces from around the world, covering this evolving landscape of collaborations between governments and private technology companies in the realm of surveillance and mass data processing.
This page will be updated as we find more examples and stories about problematic PPPs all around the world.
NATO Allied Command Operations (ACO) has contracted ICEYE within the frame of the Alliance Persistent Surveillance from Space. The initiative is coordinated by NATO and is intended to improve the space-based sharing of intelligence across NATO member states. ICEYE’s SAR satellites, capable of high
BlackSky Technology Inc. has secured a $24 million, four-year delivery order from the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA) as part of the Luno A Facility Operational Monitoring (FOMO) programme. BlackSky will use its AI-powered monitoring system to track changes in activity at global
MBDA’s start-up NEODE Systems has secured its first major contract from France’s defense procurement agency (Direction Générale de l’Armement) to enhance the Akeron MP missile system with AI-driven capabilities. The project will test a decision-support tool designed to boost surveillance, targeting
The NATO Support and Procurement Agency (NSPA) has ordered Carl-Gustaf M4 weapon systems and munitions from Swedish defense firm Saab on behalf of the Netherlands and France to support ground combat modernization. The contract includes advanced ammunition types and will begin delivery in 2025. This
Sweden has signed a contract with MBDA, a European missile manufacturer, to acquire a fifth-generation anti-tank guided missile system. While the exact quantity and delivery timeline remain undisclosed, the deal includes missiles, launchers, support equipment, and services. The acquisition is part
Leading AI company OpenAI is to provide generative AI capabilities in addressing security challenges in both frontline warfighting efforts and office business functions for the US Department of Defense. The project is estimated to run until July 2026. It marks the first collaboration for OpenAI
Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden signed a Strategic Partnership Agreement (SPA) with Nammo AS to provide ammunition production and delivery for the Nordic countries. The first partnership agenda is on the production of artillery and small arms calibres worth $155 million. Beyond this, the
Planet Labs PBC, a leading provider of satellite imagery and geospatial solutions, has been awarded a substantial seven-figure contract by NATO to deliver a platform solution to support continuous space-based surveillance, delivery of early warning signals and strenghtening of Maritime Domain
Draganfly Inc. has secured a contract with the Cochise County Sheriff’s Department to deploy drones for enhanced surveillance and rapid-response missions along the southern U.S. border. According to the company, the initiative “positions Cochise County as a national model for technology-enabled
The European Commission and the European Investment Fund announced its investment of €40 million in Keen Venture Partners in an effort to support defence-tech innovation in Europe. The investment is made under the Defence Equity Facility of the EU, a €175 million initiative to boost the private
The contract to be delivered by Thales Northern Ireland has been granted by the Ministry of Defense on behalf of the Ukrainian Government. According to the deal, Thales will produce more than 5,000 lightweight-multirole missiles to be used by Ukraine. A Ukrainian manifacturing partner will produce
DroneAcharya, which has recently merged with drone technology start-up AVPL International, has been awarded a contract worth 1.87m Indian Rupees ($21, 660) by the Indian Ministry of Defence. The agreement involves hardware and training for the piloting of drones. This will enhance the Indian
The contract will run until 2031, and will provide the US Air Force with drones (Unmanned Aerial Vehicles) which can serve multiple purposes, including mimicking enemy drones, data collection, and military strikes. These drones will enable enhanced surveillance by the US military. Firestorm will be
The US Army has chosen to extend its relationship with Palantir for up to four years for use of its 'Vantage' system as its main data platform. The Army Data Platform uses Palantir software to process data and utilises Artificial Intelligence (AI), significantly enhancing surveillance capabilities
The Agreement between the Chief Digital AI Office of the USDOD and Anduril is worth $100 million, and uses the latter's software 'Lattice Mesh' to expand the 'mesh' within the US military ecosystem. Anduril has stated that this will allow the delivery of critical data which will enable real-time
Anduril has been awarded a 5 year contract to weave in its Lattice software into the US Space Force's Space Surveillance Network (SSN), which monitors objects in space. The agreement will enable swift data sharing between space sensors, repositories, and personnel, and will allow the quick
With the stated aim of improving the security of satellite communication, a multinational partnership of companies involved in space engineering has partnered with the European Space Agency (ESA) to operationalise the Quantum Key Distribution Satellite (QKDSat) owned by Honeywell. The UK Space
The US Department of Defense has awarded a contract worth almost $250 million to Anduril Industries for more than 500 Roadrunner-Ms as well as Pulsar electronic warfare capabilities, with AI-enabled systems, to counter the threat of attacks using unmanned aerial systems in “priority regions”
Under a new contract effective from October 2024 to December 2025, PureTech Systems, which specialises in geospatial AI-boosted video analytics, will deploy its command-and-control software in 22,600 square kilometers of the US border. The software will integrate the sensors attached to existing
Sierra Space has been contracted by the U.S. Space Force’s Space Systems Command to design next-gen “Resilient GPS” (R‑GPS) satellites. These are smaller, cost‑effective satellites intended to bolster the existing GPS constellation and protect them against jamming and spoofing by adversaries. The R
The US Air Force will give Capella Space Corp $15 million in funding to improve and scale its synthetic aperture radar to deliver enhanced resolution imagery. Capella also supplies technology to the National Geospatial Intelligence Agency, National Reconnaissance Office, US Navy, US Space Force, and
As part of an agreement worth up to $20.8 million, Teledyne FLIR Defense will deliver ultra long-range multi-spectral imaging surveillance systems, or Star SAFIRE 380-HLD, to the Japan Maritime Defense Force, which will integrate them into the licenced Japan-based production version of the Sikorsky
Under a new contract, Planet Labs PBC will provide the NATO Communications and Information Agency's Alliance Persistent Surveillance from Space programme (APSS) with satellite data to aid in detailed tracking and analysis of foreign military activities and fill intelligence gaps. APSS is a multi
Schools in New Jersey and Wisconsin are installing Singlewire Software’s Visitor Aware, visitor management software that includes facial recognition and ID scanning, and collects visitors’ names, ID documents, date of birth, address, gender, and a facial photo, which it uses to check against the
The UK's Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) has reprimanded the Chelmer Valley High School in Chelmsford, Essex for unlawfully implementing facial recognition technology in its canteen. The school failed to perform a data protection information assessment, and didn't get adequate permission to
The Swedish Defence Materiel Administration has awarded Saab a $245 million contract to provide the Swedish air force with a third GlobalEye surveillance aircraft and other services like those already in use in UAE. The contract runs until 2029. The air force is accelerating the schedule for
Ontario allocates $30 million to install new security technologies and vape detectors, expanding their surveillance apparatus whilst contributing to an overall cut in funding per student. Some of the vape detectors installed in Canadian schools include noise detectors, however there is a lack of
Israel based company, High Lander, is providing demos of its system, called Orion, to U.S. police departments, suggesting the drones can help in law enforcement, including by performing video surveillance, searching for people or vehicles using AI and thermal sensors. https://theintercept.com/2024
Fusion Technology will earn $159.8 million over 5 years to work with the US FBI's Criminal Justice Information Services (CJIS). It will support the FBI in developing the National Data Exchange ("an investigative tool for agencies to search, analyze, and share criminal justice information"), the Law
L3Harris is contracted by the U.S. Space Force to develop space surveillance information though a programme known as MOSSAIC (the Maintenance Of Space Situational Awareness Integrated Capabilities). The program is said to provide space surveillance information for military, civil and commercial
Westminster Group PLC has ratified a ten-year, multi-million-pound contract to supply ground security operations and advanced detection, surveillance, and screening equipment, as well as maintenance, training, and support at one domestic and four international airports in the Democratic Republic of
Microsoft pitched the use of OpenAI's DALL-E software to support battlefield operations of the US Department of Defense, in seeming contravention of OpenAI's ban against working in the military field. One of the potential use cases proposed by Microsoft is to use DALL-E, OpenAI's image generation
On behalf of the Norwegian government, the Norwegian Intelligence Service has awarded Kongsberg Defence and Aerospace (“Kongsberg”) a four-year contract to supply satellite maritime surveillance data in order to cover Norwegian Areas of Interest. Kongsberg will produce three satellites and equip
It has been announced that the California Highway Patrol has signed a $1.6 million (for the first year) contract with Flock Safety to install 480 high-tech cameras on Oakland's streets and freeways to identify licence plates and catalogue passing vehicles by make, model, colour, and other features
Skeptics at an education conference pushed parents to question AI vendors' pitches instead of gambling children's privacy for promises of increased on-campus safety. Even so, schools are increasingly upgrading surveillance systems to incorporate AI and biometrics in the name of safety. Link to
US data analytics firm Palantir, known for its numerous contracts with intelligence agencies, military forces, or law enforcement and immigration authorities, has been awarded a £330m contract to run a new mass database for the UK's health service (NHS). The deal comes four years after Palantir was
When the Los Angeles Police Department opted to monitor the messages posted in forums on Neighbors, a companion app to Amazon's Ring doorbell cameras, the system forwarded over 13,000 messages in just over two years. Research shows, however, that this type of surveillance does a poor job of
Sir John Sawers, the head of MI6 between 2009 and 2014, set up a meeting between Palantir CEO Alex Karp and the Cabinet Office permanent secretary, John Manzoni, in 2019; a year later the US-based company was awarded a £27 million contract to process border and customs data without competitive
Cellebrite, which provides technology to unlock phones and access their data, asks its government agency customers to keep both its technology and the fact that they used it secret, a leaked company training video shows. Such a request violates the rights of the public to expect that authorities are
The UK Home Office has renewed its 3 year long contract with Tekever to provide maritime surveillance as a service across the English Channel using its AR5 and AR3 model drones, also known as Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs). The AR5 system is a UAV that is intended to conduct surveillance missions
The UK Home Office has drawn up secret plans to draft a letter lobbying the Information Commissioner's Office to allow the privately held company Facewatch's matching service to spread into retail shops and supermarkets across Britain in order to curb shoplifting. The strategy was agreed in a
Over 60 US cities and counties use Fusus, a "police technology platform that merges public and private cameras with predictive policing and other surveillance tools". Private surveillance camera owners are encouraged to enroll in a police-led program that enables the police to control these cameras
The UK's Home Office is expanding its contract with the Portuguese company Tekever, which has supplied live-streamed drone footage captured by a combination of radar, video, and infrafred imagery through a £1 billion contract since 2020; this contract is now being extended to monitor large stretches
The Greek defence startup Lambda Automata is putting up "Outpost" autonomous observation towers to enhance monitoring of the country's numerous islands in the Aegean Sea, important in territorial conflicts with Turkey. The towers use computer vision algorithms to turn CCTV cameras into situational
At least 37 US colleges and universities, as well as numerous school district, have repurposed Social Sentinel (recently renamed Navigate360 Detect) to help campus police surveil student protests. The software is marketed as a safety tool that can scan students' social media posts and university
Notorious military tech company Anduril is pushing its technology to the border surveillance market. Along the US-Mexico border, its surveillance towers "use an artificial intelligence system called Lattice to autonomously identify, detect and track “objects of interest”, such as humans or vehicles
In September 2022, the UK Department for Education announced that under a £270,000 contract with Suffolk-based Wonde Ltd it would collect data on children's school attendance and potentially share it with other government departments and third parties as part of its drive to raise attendance. A
Republic Squiare, one of the cultural and social hubs of the Serbian capital, Belgrade, is under constant surveillance by equipment made by the Chinese company Huawei that recognises faces, identifies vehicle number plates, and judges whether activities are "suspicious". Despite controversy over the
Under a five-year $20.7 million contract, the US state of Utah is allowing the AI company Banjo real time access to numerous sources of state-owned camera and location data, among other types and combine it with information collected from social media, satellites, and other apps in order to use its
