Dhs Ice Pia -055

Privacy Impact Assessment
for the

Repository for Analytics in a Virtualized
Environment (RAVEn)
DHS/ICE/PIA-055
May 13, 2020
Contact Point
Alysa D. Erichs
Acting Executive Associate Director
Homeland Security Investigations
U.S. Immigration & Customs Enforcement
(202) 732-5100
Reviewing Official
Dena Kozanas
Chief Privacy Officer
Department of Homeland Security
(202) 343-1717

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Abstract
The United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Homeland Security
Investigations (HSI) Innovation Lab is developing an analytical platform called the Repository for
Analytics in a Virtualized Environment (RAVEn). RAVEn will facilitate large, complex analytical
projects to support ICE’s mission to enforce and investigate violations of U.S. criminal, civil, and
administrative laws. RAVEn also enables users to develop new tools to analyze trends and isolate
criminal patterns as HSI mission needs arise. ICE is publishing this Privacy Impact Assessment
(PIA) and its associated appendices because the analytical tools that reside on RAVEn access and
store personally identifiable information (PII) retrieved from data systems owned by DHS, other
governmental agencies, and commercial databases. ICE will regularly update the appendices to
this PIA to reflect any new system connection or tool developed on the RAVEn platform.

Overview
HSI is a directorate of ICE that investigates, disrupts, and dismantles transnational criminal
threats facing the United States. As the largest investigative unit in DHS, HSI uses its unique
immigration and customs legal authorities to protect the United States from illegal activity with a
border nexus. This activity includes immigration crime; human rights violations; human
smuggling; smuggling of narcotics, weapons, and other types of contraband; child exploitation;
financial crimes; cybercrime; and export enforcement issues. HSI is composed of eight separate
but interconnected divisions organized around functional and subject matter areas. Overall those
divisions host 185 domestic field offices, 62 international attaché offices, and a number of
intelligence fusion centers, joint task forces, and other specialized units. Historically, these offices
and units separately developed and purchased analytical tools to assist their specific investigative
efforts. HSI Innovation Lab was created to centralize HSI’s development and use of analytical
tools in order to reduce duplicative efforts and increase HSI's investigative efficiency.
HSI Innovation Lab’s primary mission is developing products and tools for use by HSI
special agents and analysts in the field by turning data that has been collected by ICE into valuable
insights. HSI Innovation Lab is not an investigative unit;rather, it is dedicated to identifying types
of analytical tasks required by HSI offices and matching them with the tool or combination of tools
best suited to accomplish each task. HSI Innovation Lab focuses on merging the latest in open
source data management technologies with a flexible development philosophy that can quickly be
adapted to the ever-changing landscape that is combating complex criminal organizations.

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At a high level, the HSI Innovation Lab:
•

Identifies a mission need, likely affecting multiple programmatic areas, that is best
addressed using analytics;1

•

Selects and tailors an analytical tool, which may be repurposed from another ICE
analytical application outside of RAVEn, to address the mission need;

•

Iterates and tests the tool in the non-production environment of the RAVEn
analytical platform for accuracy and effectiveness (i.e., the tool’s analysis yields
sufficiently predictive results); and

•

Deploys the tool, or the results generated by the tool, in a manner that best meets
the mission need, on the RAVEn platform for use by appropriate HSI analysts and
special agents.

HSI Innovation Lab is dedicated to building reusable analytical tools that are designed to
be modular and focused on accomplishing specific functions. The objective is to reduce overall
cost and time by avoiding duplication of efforts across programmatic areas. HSI Innovation Lab
capabilities are powered by RAVEn, an advanced analytical platform.
RAVEn
RAVEn is a cloud-based platform that enables HSI users, who are law enforcement officers
or support law enforcement, to perform analytics across raw or unevaluated datasets using a suite
of search, analytical, and reporting tools. It is specifically designed to combine and maximize the
efficiency and capabilities of open-source tools.2 RAVEn leverages capabilities from tools
purchased by an individual HSI program/division so that they may be reused for multiple tasks,
reducing duplication of efforts across HSI.
RAVEn will not replace ICE’s traditional criminal investigatory case management
systems. Rather, RAVEn will primarily perform large, complex analytical projects at HSI. RAVEn
will curate and chain together seemingly disparate raw datasets by performing advanced analytics
across multiple datasets, thus enabling users to accomplish tasks currently considered too large or
complex for existing systems. HSI Innovation Labs will use Artificial Intelligence (AI), or machine
learning, in many RAVEn tools to better recognize patterns in data and enhance the tool’s
effectiveness.

1

Analytics is a computation of data and statistics for the purposes of evaluation, analysis, or prediction.
Open Source can be defined as “software for which the human-readable source code is available for use, study,
reuse, modification, enhancement, and redistribution by the users of that software.” See HOST - Open Source in
Government Challenges and Opportunities, available at
https://www.dhs.gov/sites/default/files/publications/Open%20Source%20Software%20in%20Government%20%E2
%80%93%20Challenges%20and%20Opportunities_Final.pdf.
2

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For example, using the RAVEn analytical tools framework, HSI Innovation Lab is training
a tool using AI to analyze HSI Reports of Investigation (ROI) stored in the HSI Data Warehouse3
and extract relevant information and relationships in the data. The tool enables users to search free
text narratives and some structured metadata in ROI data to extract entities (e.g., individuals,
businesses, vehicles, phone numbers, or addresses) and identify interconnections (i.e.,
relationships and patterns) among those data fields. This type of analysis can identify relationships
in the data that might not otherwise have been found without machine learning due to the number
of records and the complexity of their differences.
To train the tool, HSI Innovation Lab personnel annotate records to depict the information
and relationships of interest. The tool will use the annotated records to create a model (a
computation or a formula formed as a result of an algorithm4) that is then used to extract relevant
information and relationships. A subset of ROI records, which were initially set aside, are
separately analyzed and used to evaluate the efficacy of the model (i.e., ensure the relevant
information and relationships the tool is uncovering are the same as those found in the manually
analyzed data). This subset of records is commonly referred to as the testing dataset. As needed,
HSI Innovation Lab personnel further train the tool (e.g., adjust parameters or run the training data
through the model additional times) until the results of the tool match the results of the testing
dataset. The model is not considered suitable for deployment until it reliably recognizes and
extracts the selectors (i.e., phone numbers, addresses, names) and associations (i.e., the person that
uses the phone number that was extracted) that were manually annotated in the testing dataset.
Once the tool has been determined to yield accurate results, it can then be deployed to HSI
operational units to continuously and automatically analyze large ROI datasets for connections
specified by HSI special agents or analysts. HSI Innovation Lab can then determine whether the
tool is applicable on other datasets, such as arrest records found in the ICE Enforcement Integrated
Database (EID),5 to meet future HSI investigative needs.
The RAVEn-developed tools will standardize and organize data; conduct analyses to
isolate criminal patterns; conduct trend analyses; and identify weaknesses in criminal
organizations that can be exploited by investigators. The incorporation of a vendor tool or tool
developed outside RAVEn into the RAVEn environment will necessitate updates to the tool as
business rules change. To address this issue, HSI Innovation Lab personnel will train the tool to
ensure it continues to produce relevant and accurate results within the RAVEn platform. The type
or format of a tool’s analytical work product will vary from tool to tool. Each analytical tool HSI

3

For more information on ROIs and the HSI Data Warehouse, see DHS/ICE/PIA-045 Investigative Case
Management System (ICM) available at www.dhs.gov/privacy.
4
An algorithm is a process or set of rules to be followed in calculations or other problem-solving operations.
5
See DHS/ICE/PIA-015 Enforcement Integrated Database, available at www.dhs.gov/privacy.

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Innovation Lab develops for the RAVEn platform is examined in greater detail in the appendices
of this PIA.6
RAVEn will ingest either datasets from other systems or manual uploads of investigative
records from HSI agents. RAVEn tools can also search and query other systems through
application programming interfaces (APIs).7 RAVEn has incorporated all datasets from its
predecessor, the ICE Big Data Environment (ICE-BDE).8 RAVEn will ingest datasets and
maintain the data in an ICE-owned and controlled cloud computing environment. While all
ingested data will reside within the cloud system, every tool will be segregated into separate
operating environments through user and system access requirements. Data is aggregated in the
RAVEn environment and user access is controlled using a centrally managed Attribute Based
Access Control (ABAC). Every record brought into the system is assigned one or more attribute(s),
referred to as a “Security Bucket ID” within RAVEn. Users are then granted permissions to view
and add records to that Security Bucket based on their need-to-know and job duties. Regardless of
which tool a user is viewing, the user’s ability to see a certain type of record is uniform and
consistent because it is managed by the RAVEn system as a whole. Similarly, users are granted
access to tools based on their need-to-know and job duties. RAVEn’s central data store eliminates
the need for a separate data store for each application, which would result in multiple copies of
many datasets containing PII. RAVEn tools are created with a specific mission need in mind and
user roles will vary by analytical tool.
Whether data is ingested into RAVEn or merely queried from the original databases will
be determined by the use case as each new tool is developed. At the time HSI Innovation Lab
makes a connection between RAVEn and another database, it will execute an interconnection
agreement (ICA) with the owner of that database that will document system auditing, logging,
oversight, and permissible uses of datasets. HSI personnel may only access the data associated
with their use of RAVEn and for which they have a designated need-to-know. This access decision
will be made on a tool-by-tool basis.
As stated above, RAVEn is an analytical platform and not a case management system.
RAVEn also does not alter original source system data. Information and analyses generated within
RAVEn and pertaining to ongoing investigations will be manually added to the relevant case
file/case management system by the reviewing analyst or agent. For example, if RAVEn ran ROI
6

The appendices for this PIA detail: all source systems that provide information to RAVEn, all analytical tools
developed by the HSI Innovation Lab to support RAVEn, and the data elements each RAVEn tool uses.
7
An API allows two separate computer systems or software applications to communicate with one another.
8
ICE-BDE provided users with the ability to perform analytics across disparate ICE datasets in order to identify
anomalous behavior. The project fell under the ICE Analytics Program, which seeks to provide users with a tool
suite of analytical products from which they can perform search, analytics and reporting. ICE-BDE generated
investigative leads and conducted trend analysis used to identify entities of interest to investigators and analysts.
BDE was decommissioned in 2018 and its data and capabilities were migrated to RAVEn.

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data in the tool described in the example above, any relevant trends or criminal patterns the tool
identified would be reviewed and verified by HSI special agents and analysts. The special agent
or analyst would then be required to manually input RAVEn work products into a new ROI for
investigative follow up. Investigative tips or leads that result from RAVEn products are subject to
further investigation by HSI special agents prior to any concrete law enforcement action.

Section 1.0 Authorities and Other Requirements
1.1

What specific legal authorities and/or agreements permit and
define the collection of information by the project in question?

Pursuant to the Homeland Security Act of 2002,9 the Secretary of Homeland Security has
the authority to enforce numerous federal criminal and civil laws. These include laws residing in
Titles 8, 18, 19, 21, 22, 31, and 50 of the U.S. Code. The Secretary delegated this authority to ICE
in DHS Delegation Number 7030.2, Delegation of Authority to the Assistant Secretary for the
Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the Reorganization Plan Modification for
the Department of Homeland Security (January 30, 2003). ICE has been authorized to collect
information under 5 U.S.C. § 301; 8 U.S.C. §1103 and 1105; 8 U.S.C. § 1225(d)(3); 8 U.S.C. §
1324(b)(3); 8 U.S.C. § 1357(a); 8 U.S.C. § 1360(b); 19 U.S.C. § 1; and 19 U.S.C. § 1509.

1.2 What Privacy Act System of Records Notice(s) (SORN(s)) apply to
the information?
The data ingested and maintained by RAVEn from other DHS or Federal agencies is
controlled and covered by source system Systems of Records Notices (SORN). The specific
SORNs for each relevant dataset will be listed in the appendices of this PIA.
Manual uploads of records by HSI onto the RAVEn platform are covered by the DHS/ICE009 External Investigations SORN10 as they will be collected through investigative processes and
used for investigations of violations of the law within ICE’s jurisdiction.
RAVEn analytical products that are used for lead generation are governed by the system
of record in which the product will ultimately be stored. For example, if ICE stored these analytical
products in its Investigative Case Management system (ICM),11 then the DHS/ICE-009 External
Investigations SORN would provide coverage.

9

Pub. L. 107-296, Nov. 25, 2002.
DHS/ICE-009 External Investigations, 75 FR 404 (Jan. 5, 2010). Note: this SORN is currently in the process of
being updated.
11
See DHS/ICE/PIA-045 Investigative Case Managements System (ICM) available at www.dhs.gov/privacy.
10

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1.3 Has a system security plan been completed for the information
system(s) supporting the project?
ICE has created a System Security Plan (SSP) to support RAVEn’s Authority to Operate
(ATO).

1.4 Does a records retention schedule approved by the National
Archives and Records Administration (NARA) exist?
Retention schedules for data within RAVEn will be determined by the source systems from
which they originate. All data ingests are also tagged with the source system retention schedule.
Data in RAVEn will be refreshed from the source systems at a regular rate, and therefore will
adhere to the source system schedules. As source system information refreshes, it will delete any
data within RAVEn designated for destruction. Ad-hoc data uploads will be retained in the same
manner as their associated case file. Case files are routinely retained for 20 years after the case is
closed in accordance with legacy customs schedule N1-36-86-1-161.3 (inv 7B).12 An ICE-wide
updated schedule for investigative records is being developed and will be submitted to NARA for
approval.
The RAVEn platform ties any visualizations (i.e., maps, graphs, charts of data points) or
analytical products it creates to the underlying records that a RAVEn tool analyzed. When RAVEn
updates source records on the platform the analytical product derived from those records are also
updated on the RAVEn platform. The appendices of this PIA contain citations to all published
privacy documentation of ingested datasets, which contain the relevant retention schedules for
ingested data. Analytical products that do not generate a lead or are unused are considered
intermediary records and will be deleted when no longer needed as specified by General Records
Schedule 5.2 item 020. If analytical records are marked by an analyst or agent as connected to an
ongoing investigation or case, then the record will be retained for the same length of time as the
associated case file, 20 years after the case is closed.

1.5 If the information is covered by the Paperwork Reduction Act
(PRA), provide the OMB Control number and the agency number for the
collection. If there are multiple forms, include a list in an appendix.
RAVEn does not collect information directly from individuals. All information accessed
and analyzed by RAVEn is provided by government agencies and commercial providers. Some

12

Records retention is made in accordance with legacy customs schedule N1-36-86-1-161.3 (inv 7B), available at
https://www.archives.gov/files/records-mgmt/rcs/schedules/departments/department-of-the-treasury/rg-0036/n1036-86-001_sf115.pdf.

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source systems may be subject to the PRA and will state the OMB control number in their
respective PIAs. The PIA for each source system can be found in the appendices of this PIA.

Section 2.0 Characterization of the Information
2.1 Identify the information the project collects, uses, disseminates, or
maintains.
RAVEn operates as a platform for a variety of analytical tools that operate across disparate
datasets. RAVEn employs user access restrictions at the data element level and robust user auditing
controls to compartmentalize data based on a user’s need-to-know. The information contained
within the RAVEn platform is sourced from systems as described in this PIA’s appendix and from
information collected by HSI personnel during their investigations. The information contained in
the RAVEn platform will continuously change as analytical tools are developed.
On an ad hoc basis, an HSI agent may manually upload records directly into RAVEn for
use by a specific tool for a pre-designated purpose. Since RAVEn is not a case management
system, the agent must also include the information in appropriate recordkeeping systems, such as
ICM. The following are examples of the types of information that are obtained through HSI
investigative processes and could be uploaded to RAVEn:
•

Photographs, video, and/or documents obtained during surveillance of subjects of an
investigation.

•

Audio or video recordings of interviews conducted by HSI special agents.

•

Documents or other information obtained pursuant to search warrants, subpoenas, or
court orders.

•

Information shared by foreign partners with HSI special agents pursuant to treaties or
other legal frameworks.

RAVEn also accesses and stores law enforcement, immigration, border inspection,
criminal, visa, and publicly available information from U.S. government and commercial
databases. RAVEn obtains information from other systems either via bulk data transfer or through
queries of the system. ICE uses RAVEn to isolate patterns of activity which are indicative of
criminal activity and provide investigators access to the information needed to successfully disrupt
and dismantle criminal networks. Pattern isolation is most successful if a tool has all relevant
information and large datasets, thus the more information ingested by the tool will dramatically
decreases the risk of introducing error or bias into RAVEn machine learning models.

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Certain U.S. government data systems accessed by RAVEn are governed by information
sharing rules which prohibit bulk data transfer. For these systems, RAVEn allows users to conduct
queries based on specific information. The following examples are representative of the
differences between information obtained in bulk versus information obtained via query:
•

The RAVEn platform will ingest and store U.S. and foreign trade records from other
governmental systems.13 Tools being developed within the RAVEn platform will
identify organizations that are involved in exporting sensitive material in ways that are
dissimilar to other organizations in their geographic area.

•

The RAVEn platform performs queries in the National Crime Information Center
(NCIC)14 using specific identifiers (e.g., name, date of birth, sex). These queries are
conducted once an individual has been identified as a subject of interest. The queries
return information related to a subject’s criminal history and other relevant information,
which is then added to a RAVEn analytical product.

RAVEn may contain PII relating to individuals who are non-immigrants, immigrants, U.S.
citizens, or lawful permanent residents. The categories of information collected, used,
disseminated, and maintained in the RAVEn source systems include:

13

•

Biographic – Includes an individual’s name, spouse’s name, children’s names, aliases,
gender, date of birth, birth certificate, place/country of birth, address (current and
former), phone number, country of citizenship, country of residence, Alien Registration
Number (A-Number), Social Security number (if available), passport number, email
address, usernames for social media, etc.

•

Biometric – Includes fingerprint images, fingerprint identification numbers, and
photographs.

•

Travel – Includes visa information (e.g., number, country of issuance, expiration date),
passport number, border crossing card number, and arrival and departure information.

•

Location-Related – Includes address information, geotags from metadata, or
geolocation information from surveillance activities, witness accounts, or
commercially available data. Source systems might also include data derived from third
party license plate reader cameras.15

See Appendix A of this PIA for more information.
See National Crime Information Center (NCIC) Privacy Impact Assessment, available at
https://www.fbi.gov/file-repository/pia-ncic.pdf/view.
15
For more information on License Plate Reader technology, see DHS/ICE/PIA-039 License Plate Reader Data
from a Commercial Service available at www.dhs.gov/privacy.
14

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•

Immigration-Related – Includes class of admission (e.g., visa type), immigration status,
immigration benefit application information (e.g., adjustment of status), immigration
history, and employment history.

•

Criminal History – Includes outstanding warrants, criminal charges and arrests, arrest
dispositions, NCIC codes for crimes charged and convicted, FBI number, and
sentencing data.

•

Financial Data – Includes data on suspicious financial activity, currency transaction
reports, and currency or monetary instrument reports.

•

Telecommunications Data - Includes telecommunication device identifiers (e.g.,
Internet Protocol Addresses, Electronic Serial Number), telecommunications usage
data (e.g., date/time of call, dialed number), and biographic information on targets of
investigations, potential targets, associates of targets, or any individuals or entities that
receive calls from these individuals. This does not include the content of phone calls.

•

Case-Related – Includes case number, digital copies of evidence, court records,
incident reports, arrest reports, seizure reports, electronic surveillance reports
(ELSURs), and contents of Reports of Investigation (ROIs). ROIs are narratives
documenting investigative activities. ROIs may describe case details and statuses,
summaries of events (e.g., target encounters, witness or victim interviews, surveillance
activities), agent observations, descriptions of evidence, and any other information
relevant to a case. Case-related data may also include publicly available open source
information, such as social media posts or information found in public databases (e.g.,
county and court records) as well as information obtained from the darknet.16

ICE will update its privacy compliance documentation to account for any changes to
RAVEn that would impact the collection, use, or maintenance of PII. This could include RAVEn
ingesting new datasets or developing new analytical tools. When a new data set is being added to
RAVEn that is not owned by ICE, a Privacy Threshold Analysis and an updated appendix to this
PIA will be coordinated with the owning agency. The types of data ingested and used by each
RAVEn tool is reflected in the relevant appendices of this PIA.

2.2 What are the sources of the information and how is the information
collected for the project?
All raw datasets analyzed by RAVEn are provided by other government and commercial
databases. Some datasets may be ingested in bulk, while other datasets are only queried within
their source systems by a RAVEn API (see sec 2.1, above). The data sources and the collection
16

Information that is only accessible through anonymizing cryptographic software (Tor).

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methods for Federal source systems are explained in detail in the source system PIAs and SORNs,
which are referenced in the appendices of this PIA. Non-Federal source systems are discussed in
the appendices of this PIA.
RAVEn does not collect information directly from individuals. On an ad hoc basis, HSI
agents may manually upload records directly into RAVEn for use by a specific tool for a predesignated purpose. These records stem from investigative requests, such as warrants or
subpoenas, or other investigative activity.

2.3 Does the project use information from commercial sources or
publicly available data? If so, explain why and how this information is
used.
Yes. Commercially available data and open source (public) data may be ingested or
accessed by RAVEn. ICE routinely uses publicly available commercial data to verify or update
information about an individual, such as the person’s current address/geolocation, civil litigation
records, criminal history, or incorporation records. This data is targeted and is used to cross-check,
confirm, and broaden the scope of investigations and intelligence gathering efforts. Information
RAVEn accesses from commercial data sources is further detailed in the appendices.
In addition, HSI users may also upload an individual’s or business’s publicly available
information on an ad hoc basis. This information will only be collected pursuant to active and
ongoing investigations. Investigators will manually capture and upload information to the RAVEn
platform including:
•

Social media history;

•

Content from public web sites;

•

Advertisement/marketing posting from both the open internet and dark net; and

•

Business registrations.

RAVEn will also provide tools to HSI users that will simplify the process of collecting
information from open source systems by using automated scripts that mimic the actions of
investigators. RAVEn tools that use commercial data or assist in its collection will be detailed in
the appendix section of this PIA after they are developed.

2.4

Discuss how accuracy of the data is ensured.

All raw datasets analyzed by RAVEn are provided by other government and commercial
databases. RAVEn relies on the accuracy and integrity of source system data. The accuracy of data
from manual uploads will be dependent on the collection methods used by the HSI agent. The
accuracy of DHS-owned data, other government agency data, and commercial and public source

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data depends on the original source. HSI Innovation Lab endeavors to ensure data from ingested
sources is routinely refreshed in RAVEn as close to real time as possible. This way RAVEn data
can be corrected when the data in source systems is updated. RAVEn cannot alter data in source
systems. If RAVEn users notice inaccurate data in RAVEn, the RAVEn system owner will update
or notify the source system administrators accordingly.
If an HSI agent manually uploads investigative evidence into RAVEn, it is the
responsibility of the agent and his or her supervisor to ensure the data is accurate. In the event
uploaded data is later identified as inaccurate, that agent is required to modify his or her own
uploads to correct the data. If the user who uploaded the data no longer has access privileges for
RAVEn, it is the responsibility of a supervisor or systems administrator to make the appropriate
changes to the incorrect data.
In addition, data quality is strengthened by the policy requirement that all RAVEn users
attach a case number to the uploaded data, when one is available. Attaching a case number links
the data to a particular investigation or analysis project, thereby helping to ensure the inclusion of
the data is appropriate for investigative or analytical purposes.
Moreover, RAVEn analytical products that result in investigative tips or leads are subject
to further investigation by HSI special agents prior to any concrete law enforcement action. HSI
agents and analysts receive training on the importance of verifying information from RAVEn
before including it in any analytical report or using it as the basis for any formal law enforcement
action, such as opening an investigation or conducting an enforcement activity. Information is
always handled with concern for its ultimate potential use as evidence in court; as such, HSI
personnel are very careful to ensure the quality and integrity of the information to avoid damaging
an investigation. HSI personnel are also responsible for ensuring that the information is relevant
to an investigation and if an analytical product is found to be irrelevant or incorrect ICE will not
retain the information.

2.5 Privacy Impact Analysis: Related to Characterization of the
Information
Privacy Risk: There is a risk that information will be included in the system that is not
necessary or relevant to accomplish the system’s purpose.
Mitigation: The risk is mitigated. Initial information collections are governed by source
system business rules and HSI requirements to comply with law and DHS policy. At the time of
each database connection, an ICA will be created between the source system owner and RAVEn
personnel that will determine whether a dataset is necessary for the platform’s mission purpose.
As each tool is developed or any new data set is added, HSI Innovation Lab personnel will
complete a Privacy Threshold Analysis in consultation with the ICE Privacy Division and the
owning agency to ensure that the ingestion or querying of datasets is relevant and necessary for

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the tool’s purpose. The governance process is overseen by HSI Innovation Lab senior managers.
The existence of this governance process will help to ensure new data sources are appropriately
vetted, as well as compliance with the DHS Fair Information Practice Principles.17 RAVEn
imposes user access restrictions and permissions at the record level so that manually uploaded data
is only viewable to a user if it is tagged as associated with his or her profiles. Access controls
follow the data and attach to an analytical work product. This prevents manually uploaded data
from being accessed, used, or transferred in contravention with the security requirements of that
data.
Privacy Risk: There is a risk when ingesting bulk data that changes or corrections made
to PII in the underlying source systems will not be reflected in RAVEn, thus leading to
inaccurate or out-of-date information being stored, shared, or used for mission purposes.
Mitigation: This risk is partially mitigated. At the time of each database connection HSI
Innovation Lab will create, in consultation with source system owners, an ICA that will
determine system refresh rates, auditing, logging, oversight, and data transfer rates between the
systems. Under the agreement, system performance will be monitored to ensure the rate of data
flows. HSI Innovation Lab endeavors to ensure routine ingests occur as often as possible. If
HSI users determine that information is inaccurate in a source system, the RAVEn system
administrator will notify the administrators of that source system. The data will then be
refreshed in RAVEn according to the refresh schedule. All analysis in RAVEn is conducted via
real time interfaces, meaning that a tool’s work product would change as soon as the underlying
data is changed.
This risk is further mitigated through the ICE analytical vetting process. ICE places great
importance on ensuring analytical products are thoroughly vetted by trained analysts before
being sent to the field for further investigation. HSI analysts using a RAVEn tool (not
Innovation Lab personnel) will check source systems to corroborate and confirm the accuracy
of an analytical match. At that time, any inconsistencies between source system data and
RAVEn data can be reconciled.
Privacy Risk: There is a risk that data may become corrupted during transmission from
RAVEn source systems to RAVEn tools.
Mitigation: The risk is mitigated. The HSI Innovation Lab has created technical
measures to ensure that data transmittals between source systems and RAVEn do not affect the
integrity of the datasets. Although data may be accessed by many RAVEn tools, the source
datasets are ingested only once into RAVEn. Files ingested by the RAVEn platform have a
17

For more information on the Fair Information Practice Principles see Privacy Policy Guidance Memorandum
2008-01/Privacy Policy Directive 140-06, The Fair Information Practice Principles: Framework for Privacy Policy
at the Department of Homeland Security. available at www.dhs.gov/privacy.

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cryptographic hash created at the time of ingestion. When a file or record is analyzed by a
RAVEn tool, it is checked against the original cryptographic hash to ensure it has not been
modified in any way.

Section 3.0 Uses of the Information
3.1

Describe how and why the project uses the information.

RAVEn user analysis of data will vary depending on the tool accessing the data on the
platform. An examination of the use of data for each analytical tool is available in the appendices
of this PIA. RAVEn will be a critical platform for the development of tools to analyze information
and identify connections within disparate datasets that had proved to be previously too difficult to
synthesize. The automated nature of RAVEn analysis greatly increases the efficiency and
effectiveness of certain aspects of HSI’s otherwise manual and labor-intensive work. In so doing,
RAVEn facilitates more efficient investigations of immigration crime; human rights violations and
human smuggling; smuggling of narcotics, weapons and other types of contraband; child
exploitation; transnational gangs; financial crimes; cybercrime; and export enforcement issues.

3.2 Does the project use technology to conduct electronic searches,
queries, or analyses in an electronic database to discover or locate a
predictive pattern or an anomaly? If so, state how DHS plans to use such
results.
RAVEn will have the ability to conduct queries of datasets accessed from multiple
databases to discover predictive patterns and connections between entities and events. RAVEn
tools will assist users in recognizing relationships between disparate or previously unsynthesizable data. HSI users will do this to develop timely, actionable leads needed to accomplish
law enforcement and criminal intelligence missions. All analytical products created by an agent or
analyst are reviewed and refined by at least one other analyst or agent before a RAVEn product is
entered into a case management system as a lead. RAVEn analytical products that result in
investigative tips or leads are subject to further investigation by HSI special agents prior to any
concrete law enforcement action.

3.3 Are there other components with assigned roles and responsibilities
within the system?
Law enforcement personnel from other DHS components may be granted user access to
certain tools residing on the RAVEn platform if they are designated as Task Force Officers (TFOs)

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with HSI,18 have the required security clearance, and have a demonstrated need-to-know. At the
time of each new tool’s development or system connection, business rules for the system and
privacy compliance documentation will be updated. The business rules and privacy compliance
documentation will determine user access, system auditing, permissible uses of the tool or dataset,
and oversight of the tool.

3.4

Privacy Impact Analysis: Related to the Uses of Information

Privacy Risk: There is a risk of unauthorized access to or inappropriate use or disclosure
of information contained in RAVEn.
Mitigation: This risk is mitigated by training, controls on user access, and oversight by
HSI management. ICE requires that all personnel take annual Information Assurance Awareness
Training, which stresses the importance of appropriate and authorized use of personal data in
government information systems. As tools are developed and system connections are made, HSI
Innovation Lab reviews and updates all relevant business rules and compliance documentation for
the system, which includes user access controls.
While the ability to access RAVEn may be widespread throughout HSI, HSI Innovation
Lab will verify and consult with HSI program managers regarding user access to tools and datasets.
As a default, a user’s access privileges to a tool or dataset on RAVEn is limited to access he or she
has to a source system. System administrators or HSI program managers verify personnel’s needto-know before granting access to RAVEn tools. A RAVEn administrator could grant access to
general use tools, but a HSI project manager would need to confirm the requestor’s need for access
to more specialized tools or data. Additionally, when users perform manual ad hoc uploads of data
to RAVEn, the HSI Innovation Lab restricts access to the uploaded data to only those users with a
need-to-know through record level data tagging. These access layers also apply to tools and their
corresponding algorithms. No tool or user can view or access data until it has been determined that
access is relevant and necessary. As described in Section 8.3, security and access controls are in
place to mitigate the risk of unauthorized individuals gaining access to RAVEn. Regular auditing,
logging, and oversight by HSI Innovation Lab personnel ensure that unauthorized access to the
systems does not occur.
Privacy Risk: There is a risk that information about individuals unassociated with illicit
activities will be included in analysis conducted by RAVEn’s tools.
Mitigation: This risk is partially mitigated. ICE’s policies and procedures are targeted
toward limiting the amount of information that is held by ICE to that which is relevant and
necessary to execute its law enforcement mission. The majority of raw datasets analyzed by
18

Task Force Officers are personnel from other law enforcement agencies that work in concert with HSI for a
specific purpose (i.e., human trafficking or counterterrorism) to share information and deconflict efforts on
investigations.

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RAVEn are accessed from other DHS components and partners that collect under specific law
enforcement authority. RAVEn confirms through the data sharing agreement process that systems
performing the original collection provide accurate data that is relevant to the administration of
the law or other law enforcement purposes.
Furthermore, RAVEn analytical tools are created to determine specific patterns of illegality
or criminal threats. Therefore, RAVEn tools’ narrow focus should filter out an irrelevant
individual’s information from the final analytical product. Finally, all analytical products created
by an agent or analyst are reviewed and refined by at least one other analyst or agent before a
RAVEn product is entered into a case management system. The analyst can remove any data
deemed irrelevant to the tool’s stated law enforcement purpose.
Privacy Risk: There is a risk RAVEn tools will use data from source systems for purposes
beyond the purpose of its original collection.
Mitigation: This risk is mitigated through the development process of the analytical tool
and/or system connection. All system connections to RAVEn will be accompanied by a data
sharing agreement, which will be reviewed by both the HSI Innovation Lab and the source system
owners to ensure the transferred data is used only for purposes consistent with the original
collection of the data. As tools develop, the HSI Innovation Lab will update compliance
documentation (such as privacy documentation and business rules) before a tool will be allowed
to operate. During the review process, the HSI Innovation Lab and ICE Privacy will confirm that
the tool’s use of information aligns with the stated purposes of its collection as noted in the relevant
SORNs and PIAs of the source system.

Section 4.0 Notice
4.1 How does the project provide individuals notice prior to the
collection of information? If notice is not provided, explain why not.
RAVEn does not directly collect information from individuals, and therefore is unable to
provide direct notification that information is being collected. Due to the nature of an analytical
tool’s use in law enforcement, it is also not feasible to notify an individual prior to the use of their
information due to the possibility of harming ongoing law enforcement activities and
investigations. Further, providing notice could alert the target of an actual or potential criminal,
civil, or regulatory investigation or reveal ICE’s investigative interest in a subject. However,
general notice of the existence, contents, and uses of this system, and the systems from which it
routinely derives its data, are provided by the publication of this PIA and the associated SORNs.
When information is obtained from Federal Government forms, notices on such forms state that
information may be shared with law enforcement entities.

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4.2 What opportunities are available for individuals to consent to uses,
decline to provide information, or opt out of the project?
As RAVEn does not directly collect information from individuals, there is no opportunity
for individuals to consent, decline, or opt out of providing information to the system. The agency
or program that collected the information from individuals is best positioned to provide them with
the opportunity to consent, decline to provide information, or opt out. These programs, however,
may not be able to provide an individual with the opportunity to consent or decline to the use of
their information, as their systems are maintained for a law enforcement purpose.

4.3

Privacy Impact Analysis: Related to Notice

Privacy Risk: There is a risk that individuals are not aware that their information is
contained within RAVEn and may not understand how ICE uses the information collected about
them.
Mitigation: This risk is partially mitigated by the publication of this PIA, which serves as
public notice of the existence of RAVEn and the data its tools access and store. Also, public notice
is provided by Federal agencies through source system SORNs that information contained therein
could be used for law enforcement purposes.

Section 5.0 Data Retention by the project
5.1

Explain how long and for what reason the information is retained.

Raw datasets accessed or ingested by RAVEn will be governed by different SORNs and
different NARA approved retention periods. The retention of raw data within RAVEn is
determined by the source system connection. As an analytical platform, RAVEn will not hold raw
data longer than the source system. As source system information refreshes, it will delete any data
within RAVEn designated for destruction. All data ingests are also tagged with the source system
retention schedule, thus if a source system is decommissioned (such as ICE-BDE), records will be
retained for the relevant retention schedule in RAVEn. Ad-hoc uploads and data from source
systems with no retention schedule will be tagged with its associated case file. That data will be
retained for 20 years after the case is closed. The retention period for each dataset is outlined in
the published privacy documentation cited in the appendix of this PIA.
All visualizations and analytics products created by RAVEn contain data tags that point to
the underlying records in the RAVEn database. Analytical products are considered intermediary
records which are destroyed upon verification of successful creation of the final document or file
(such as a generated lead), or when no longer needed for a business use, whichever is later. When
underlying records are deleted through system refreshes, the analytical product will also be deleted

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automatically unless marked for an investigation. If analytical products are marked by an analyst
or agent as connected to an ongoing investigation or case, then the record will be retained for 20
years after a case is closed.19 These products will be transferred to the relevant case management
system, which has its own processes for ensuring proper data retention and destruction. An ICEwide updated schedule for investigative records is being developed and will be submitted to NARA
for approval.

5.2

Privacy Impact Analysis: Related to Retention

Privacy Risk: There is a risk that information will be retained in the RAVEn environment
for longer than is necessary to accomplish the purpose for which the information was originally
collected.
Mitigation: The risk is mitigated. RAVEn datasets are refreshed and updated regularly
from source systems. Data will also be tagged with the source system retention schedule when it
is ingested. Moreover, information sharing agreements or system inter-connection agreements will
be finalized by both HSI Innovation Lab and source system data owners. These agreements will
specify the applicable records retention policies and procedures for RAVEn to access or ingest
source system data. As discussed in section 8 of this PIA, HSI Innovation Lab will regularly audit
RAVEn to ensure that data is not inadvertently retained longer than what is reflected in the ICA.
Handling and retention requirements will remain consistent for data as it is accessed by
different tools on the platform. Products of RAVEn’s analytical tools will be connected to the
underlying records in RAVEn. As the underlying records are deleted in accordance with source
system retention periods, the analytical products will be updated to ensure that records do not
remain in a RAVEn analytical work product past the source system retention schedule.

Section 6.0 Information Sharing
6.1 Is information shared outside of DHS as part of the normal agency
operations? If so, identify the organization(s) and how the information is
accessed and how it is to be used.
Access to RAVEn tools and datasets will be determined on a case-by-case basis and is
explained in further detail specific to each tool in the appendices of this PIA. ICE may share final
analytical products of RAVEn with law enforcement or intelligence agencies that demonstrate a
need to know the information in the performance of their missions and in furtherance of HSI’s
19

Records retention is made in accordance with legacy customs schedule N1-36-86-1-161.3 (inv 7B), available at
https://www.archives.gov/files/records-mgmt/rcs/schedules/departments/department-of-the-treasury/rg-0036/n1036-86-001_sf115.pdf.

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own law enforcement analyses or investigations. These agencies can include federal, state, tribal,
local, and foreign law enforcement agencies, as well as relevant fusion centers, FBI Joint Terrorism
Task Forces, and international organizations such as INTERPOL.

6.2

Describe how the external sharing noted in 6.1 is compatible with
the SORN noted in 1.2

The sharing of PII with law enforcement agencies outside of the Department is compatible
with the original purpose for RAVEn source system collections, namely to conduct criminal and
civil law enforcement investigations and activities, to administrate the Immigration and
Nationality Act,20 and to ensure public safety. All external sharing of source system information
will be determined in the ICA process to ensure that sharing falls within the scope of applicable
law, including the published routine uses in the associated SORNs, as listed in the appendices of
this PIA.
For example, RAVEn ingests data from the Enforcement Integrated Database (EID).21 EID
is governed by the Criminal Arrest Records and Immigration Enforcement Records (CARIER)
System of Records SORN.22 Like all DHS SORNs, CARIER has routine use G that allows for the
sharing of data with Federal, state, local, tribal, and foreign law enforcement agencies if the record,
in conjunction with other information, indicates a violation of the law under that agency’s
jurisdiction. HSI Innovation lab will, through the tool development process and ICA process,
ensure that onward sharing of that tool’s analytical product is for a purpose in line with CARIER’s
routine use G. Similarly, if the RAVEn tool compiled EID data with data from the Department of
Treasury’s Financial Crime Enforcement Network (FinCEN)System,23 HSI Innovation Lab will
ensure that the purpose of the tool, and any authorized onward sharing, also aligns with routine
use 3 of the FinCEN SORN.24 That routine use allows information or records from FinCEN to be
shared with authorized domestic governmental agencies charged with administering the law.
The sharing of information that is manually uploaded into RAVEn with law enforcement
is compatible with the original purpose for collection, namely to conduct criminal law enforcement
investigations and other enforcement activities, to uphold and enforce the law, and to ensure public
safety. All external sharing falls within the scope of applicable law, including the published routine
uses in the DHS/ICE-009 External Investigations SORN.

20

8 U.S.C. 1101 et al.
See DHS/ICE/PIA-015 Enforcement Integrated Database (EID) available at www.dhs.gov/privacy.
22
DHS/ICE-011 Criminal Arrest Records and Immigration Enforcement Records (CARIER) System of Records, 81
FR 72080 (Oct. 19, 2016).
23
For more information about FinCEN, see FinCEN PIA-Data Collection, Storage, and Dissemination available at
https://www.fincen.gov/sites/default/files/shared/FinCEN_DCSD_PIA.pdf.
24
FinCEN .003 - Bank Secrecy Act Reports System - 79 FR 20969 (Apr. 14, 2014).
21

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6.3

Does the project place limitations on re-dissemination?

Re-dissemination of RAVEn information by an agency external to DHS is prohibited
unless the third agency receives ICE’s express authorization. Every ICA that will be created for
RAVEn will have a section for unique limits on re-dissemination.
RAVEn users will also follow the Third Agency Rule, which mandates that prior to sharing
information or data to a third agency (not contemplated in the original sharing agreement), the
agency that intends to share will acquire consent from the agency that provided the data or
information. Only individuals with a need to know will be able to gain access to RAVEn analytical
products.

6.4 Describe how the project maintains a record of any disclosures
outside of the Department.
Each tool on the RAVEn platform that provides access to individuals outside of DHS will
be developed with the ability to maintain logs of information shared between agencies. Any
disclosure of information derived from an analytical work product created by a RAVEn tool will
be noted in the case management system in which the information is documented. HSI users are
required to complete and retain DHS Form 191, Privacy Act Disclosure Record, when making any
disclosures outside of DHS.

6.5

Privacy Impact Analysis: Related to Information Sharing

Privacy Risk: There is a risk RAVEn data will be disclosed to external partners without a
need-to-know.
Mitigation: This risk is mitigated. RAVEn users are required by law and policy to share
information with only those external partners who have a demonstrated law enforcement,
intelligence, or national security need-to-know. Parameters for re-dissemination of a particular
tool’s analytical work product will be determined during the development process and noted in the
appropriate compliance documentation. All external sharing will be documented in audit logs that
will be regularly reviewed by HSI Innovation Lab administrators. RAVEn users will be trained on
the appropriate sharing of PII for each RAVEn tool to which they are granted access. If users are
unsure whether PII can be shared with certain partners, they will be instructed to contact the ICE
Privacy Division for guidance.
Privacy Risk: There is a risk that information for individuals designated as members of a
Special Protected Class (SPC)25 will be shared without authorization.
Mitigation: This risk is partially mitigated. Some datasets ingested or queried by RAVEn
may contain information about SPCs. The special sharing and handling requirements required by
25

See 8 U.S.C. § 1367 Penalties for unauthorized disclosure of information of special protected classes.

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law and DHS policy26 will be implemented as part of the RAVEn tool development process and
interconnection agreement. RAVEn will properly identify and tag SPC data within the system. As
different source system capabilities and ingest methods differ, the method of tagging will vary, but
will be a requirement of the tool development process. HSI personnel will be required to take
training related to the special restrictions on handling, use, and disclosure of SPC data.

Section 7.0 Redress
7.1 What are the procedures that allow individuals to access their
information?
Individuals seeking notification of and access to any of the records covered by this PIA
may submit a request in writing to the ICE Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) Officer by mail
or facsimile:
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement
Freedom of Information Act Office
500 12th Street SW, Stop 5009
Washington, D.C. 20536-5009
(202) 732-0660
http://www.ice.gov/foia/
All or some of the requested information may be exempt from access pursuant to the
Privacy Act or the Freedom of Information Act (for those individuals who are not U.S. citizens or
lawful permanent residents and whose records are not covered by the Judicial Redress Act) in
order to prevent harm to law enforcement investigations or interests. Providing individual access
to these records could inform the target of an actual or potential criminal, civil, or regulatory
violation investigation or reveal investigative interest on the part of DHS or another agency.
Access to the records could also permit the individual who is the subject of a record to impede the
investigation, to tamper with witnesses or evidence, and to avoid detection or apprehension.

7.2 What procedures are in place to allow the subject individual to
correct inaccurate or erroneous information?
Individuals seeking to correct records contained in RAVEn, or seeking to contest its
content, may submit a request in writing to the ICE Office of Information Governance and Privacy
by mail:
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement
26

See DHS Directive 002-02-01 Implementation Of Section 1367 Information Provisions.

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Office of Information Governance and Privacy
Attn: Privacy Division
500 12th Street SW, Stop 5004
Washington, D.C. 20536-5004
(202) 732-3300
http://www.ice.gov/management-administration/privacy
All or some of the requested information may be exempt from correction pursuant to the
Privacy Act or the Judicial Redress Act in order to prevent harm to law enforcement investigations
or interests.

7.3 How does the project notify individuals about the procedures for
correcting their information?
ICE provides general notice via this PIA, source system SORNs, and on ICE’s publicfacing website about the procedures for submitting Freedom of Information Act and Privacy Act
requests.27 No direct notification to individuals about procedures for correcting RAVEn records is
currently provided, since the information in RAVEn is not collected directly from individuals and
records in RAVEn contain material compiled for law enforcement purposes. RAVEn contains
copies of datasets owned by ICE, DHS components, and the offices of other agencies. Therefore,
individuals may also have the option to seek access to and correction of their data directly from
those source system owners. Depending on the system in which the data resides, the corresponding
SORN might be exempt from certain Privacy Act requirements, such as access and amendment. If
so, then individuals’ right to be notified about these procedures is limited.

7.4

Privacy Impact Analysis: Related to Redress

Privacy Risk: There is a risk that individuals will be unable to participate meaningfully in
the use of their data as maintained in this system or determine whether the system maintains
records about them.
Mitigation: This risk is not mitigated. Because the data in RAVEn originates from other
systems of record with a law enforcement purpose, individuals’ rights to be notified of the
existence or non-existence of data about them, and to direct how that data may be used by ICE,
are limited. Notification to affected individuals could compromise the existence of ongoing law
enforcement activities and alert individuals to previously unknown investigations of criminal or
otherwise illegal activity. This could cause individuals to alter their behavior in such a way that
certain investigative tools, such as wiretaps or surveillance, will no longer be useful. Permitting

27

More information is available at https://www.ice.gov/foia/request.

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individuals to direct the agency’s use of their information will similarly interfere with the intended
law enforcement use of the system.

Section 8.0 Auditing and Accountability
8.1 How does the project ensure that the information is used in
accordance with stated practices in this PIA?
RAVEn leverages various technological and policy-based controls, described in greater
detail below, to ensure information is used in accordance with the stated practices in this PIA.
Robust User Access Controls: ICE policy requires that RAVEn limits a user’s access based
on the user’s need-to-know and job responsibilities. Access to each tool within RAVEn is
controlled by access control lists created at the system and user level in RAVEn. For datasets
routinely ingested into RAVEn from another source, the access control lists are based on the user’s
original access privileges in the source system. This safeguard prevents users from being able to
access data in RAVEn that they are unable to access in the source system.
Robust and Accessible User Auditing: RAVEn also implements extensive auditing of user
actions in the system. User actions are recorded and stored in audit logs accessible only to
authorized personnel. User auditing captures the following activities: logon and logoff, search
query strings, records viewed by the user, changes in access permissions, records/reports extracted
from the system, and records/reports printed by the system. The system also keeps a complete
record of all additions, modifications, and deletions of information in the system and the date,
time, and user who performed the action. This information is readily accessible by supervisors and
ICE IT security personnel.
General Supervisory Oversight and Monitoring: ICE policy requires that users grant their
supervisors access rights to all work they are performing within RAVEn. This enables supervisors
to view how their staff are using the system, including the specific data they are working with, and
the types of investigations and/or analyses they are conducting. This policy helps to deter and
identify individuals who are using the system or its data for unauthorized purposes, and to identify
unauthorized use of the system.
Tagging, Supervisory Monitoring, and System Auditing of Ad Hoc Data Uploads: When
investigative data is manually imported into RAVEn, HSI agents are required by policy to
electronically share this data with their supervisors for review. The HSI supervisor will review the
data while it remains in RAVEn’s upload queue. Data will only be uploaded from the queue if it
is approved. HSI supervisors are responsible for identifying any data imported in contravention of
ICE policy. Supervisors may request that the system administrator delete any improperly uploaded
data from the system. HSI agents are also required to enter information describing the data being

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uploaded, such as source name/category and date retrieved, which helps the supervisor evaluate
whether the upload complies with ICE policy and helps other users better understand and evaluate
the data. RAVEn will segregate all manually uploaded data through tagging and access
permissions. An HSI agent can only upload information for use by a tool that he or she has
permission to use. Finally, RAVEn keeps an audit log of all manual uploads by recording user
name and date/time of upload.

8.2 Describe what privacy training is provided to users either
generally or specifically relevant to the project.
All personnel who have access to the ICE network are required to take annual privacy and
security training, which emphasizes the importance of appropriate and authorized use of personal
data in government information systems. Users of any tool that contain SPC information will have
additional training dedicated to the appropriate handling of such information. In addition, RAVEn
users must complete system-specific training that includes rules of behavior, appropriate uses of
system data, uploading and tagging records, disclosure and dissemination of records, and system
security before they gain access to a system.

8.3 What procedures are in place to determine which users may
access the information and how does the project determine who has
access?
HSI Innovation Lab system administrators establish user accounts and update user rolebased permissions, as needed. Access roles are assigned by an HSI supervisor based on the user’s
need to know and implemented by an HSI Innovation Lab system administrator. Administrators
will limit users to the least amount of privileges within the system whenever possible. Users will
have to justify access on a tool by tool basis. Administrators and HSI Supervisors review user
access roles regularly to ensure that users have the appropriate level of access. Individuals who no
longer require access are removed from the access list.

8.4 How does the project review and approve information sharing
agreements, MOUs, new uses of the information, new access to the
system by organizations within DHS and outside?
Any new uses or sharing of information for RAVEn will be approved by HSI Innovation
Lab managers. The existence of this governance process will help to ensure that new data sources
are appropriately vetted. Any new sharing of information will require an interconnection
agreement with RAVEn and, as appropriate, an update to RAVEn’s privacy compliance
documentation.

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Responsible Officials
Jordan Holz
Privacy Officer
U.S. Immigration & Customs Enforcement
Department of Homeland Security

Approval Signature
[Original, signed copy on file with the DHS Privacy Office]
________________________________
Dena Kozanas
Chief Privacy Officer
Department of Homeland Security

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APPENDIX A
Source Systems28
Investigative Case Management System (ICM)
Datasets: ICM is the primary case management tool used by HSI for law enforcement
investigations into violations of criminal, customs, and immigration laws. ICM stores case
information (reports of investigation), subject and associate records, evidence and descriptions of
evidence, law enforcement intelligence, reports of suspicious activities, investigative tips and
leads, and warrant returns from third parties, including telecommunications data.
Associated Compliance Documentation
•

PIA: DHS/ICE/PIA-045 ICE Investigative Case Management (ICM)29

•

SORN: DHS/ICE-009 External Investigations30

Ingest/Refresh Schedule: Daily

Enforcement Integrated Database (EID)
Datasets: EID is an ICE database repository that captures investigation, arrest, booking, detention,
and removal information generated through ICE and CBP operations throughout a subject’s
interaction with the DHS enforcement processes. Records stored in EID can include records
documenting arrests, booking, detention, removal, and any information pertaining to an encounter
between a subject and a CBP or ICE law enforcement officer.
Associated Compliance Documentation:
•

PIA: DHS/ICE/PIA-015 Enforcement Integrated Database (EID)31

•

SORN: DHS/ICE-011 Criminal Arrest Records and Immigration Enforcement
Records (CARIER)32

Ingest/Refresh Schedule: Daily

28

This Appendix will be updated when new source systems are queried or their data is ingested into the RAVEn
environment.
29
See DHS/ICE/PIA-045 Investigative Case Management (ICM) available at www.dhs.gov/privacy.
30
DHS/ICE-009 External Investigations, 75 FR 404 (Jan. 5, 2010).
31
See DHS/ICE/PIA-015 Enforcement Integrated Database, available at www.dhs.gov/privacy.
32
DHS/ICE-011 Criminal Arrest Records and Immigration Enforcement Records (CARIER) System of Records, 81
FR 72080 (Oct. 19, 2016).

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Detainee Telephone Services system (DTS)
Datasets: Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) contracts with a provider for management
of telephone services at their detention facilities. Under the Detainee Telephone Services (DTS)
contract, the Contractor provides detainees with telephone access and provides ICE with
investigative reports of those calls. The Contractor reports minimal information on call activity in
the reports, including the detainee name and A-Number, the number called, date/time and duration
of the call, and the detention facility information.
Associated Compliance Documentation:
PIA: DHS/ICE/PIA-015(b) EID ENFORCE Alien Removal Module (EARM 3.0)33
SORN: DHS/ICE-011 Criminal Arrest Records and Immigration Enforcement Records
(CARIER)34
Ingest/Refresh Schedule: Daily

Pen-Link
Datasets: Pen-Link, and its associated application the Telecommunication Linking System, is
HSI’s national repository of case-related telecommunications information derived from any type
of investigative law enforcement case or event. This data is usually obtained via a subpoena to a
telecommunications company (e.g., phone company) and contains transactional details about
telecommunications activities. It does not contain the contents of any communications.
Associated Compliance Documentation
•

PIA: DHS/ICE/PIA-045 ICE Investigative Case Management (ICM)35

•

SORN: DHS/ICE-009 External Investigations36

Ingest/Refresh Schedule: Daily

Bond Management Information System (BMIS)
Datasets: BMIS is an immigration bond financial management database used to track the issuance,
maintenance, cancellation, and revocation of bonds. It contains subject records and records on
33

See DHS/ICE/PIA-015(b) EID ENFORCE Alien Removal Module (EARM 3.0), available at
www.dhs.gov/privacy.
34
DHS/ICE-011 Criminal Arrest Records and Immigration Enforcement Records (CARIER) System of Records, 81
FR 72080 (Oct. 19, 2016).
35
See DHS/ICE/PIA-045 Investigative Case Management (ICM) available at www.dhs.gov/privacy.
36
DHS/ICE-009 External Investigations, 75 FR 404 (Jan. 5, 2010).

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obligors, including bond management companies. The records contain biographic information, tax
information, and financial information.
Associated Compliance Documentation:
PIA: DHS/ICE/PIA-005 Bond Management Information System37
SORN: DHS/ICE-004 Bond Management System (BMIS)38
Ingest/Refresh Schedule: Daily

Exodus Accountability Referral System (EARS)
Datasets: EARS is a tool that supports efforts by ICE and CBP to enforce U.S. federal export
control laws. ICE and CBP must consult with relevant regulatory agencies to investigate whether
an export of a particular commodity or service is controlled. ICE and CBP request and track
information from licensing agencies using EARS. EARS collects and maintains PII about
individuals who are the Principal Party in Interest into possible criminal violations of U.S. federal
export control laws. The PII includes business contact information, country of import, license type
and number, and type of Principal Party in Interest (exporter, manufacturer, or subject of
investigation).
Associated Compliance Documentation:
PIA: DHS/ICE/PIA-021 Exodus Accountability Referral System39
SORN: DHS/ICE-009 External Investigations40
Ingest/Refresh Schedule: Daily

Significant Event Notification System (SEN)
Datasets: SEN is a reporting and law enforcement intelligence transmissions tool developed by
ICE. SEN allows the manual entry, query, and modification of various reports to provide timely
information to ICE managers on notable incidents, events, or activities that involve or impact ICE
agents and staff in the field. SEN is also used to track news stories regarding ICE and its work.
SEN includes data on individuals who are the subject of past or anticipated encounters by ICE
personnel (such as witnesses, victims, suspects, and detainees) and individuals from other law
37

See DHS/ICE/PIA-005 Bond Management Information System, available at www.dhs.gov/privacy.
DHS/ICE-004 Bond Management Information System (BMIS), 76 FR 8761 (February 15, 2011). Note: this
SORN is in the process of being updated.
39
See DHS/ICE/PIA-021 Exodus Accountability Referral System, available at www.dhs.gov/privacy.
40
DHS/ICE-009 External Investigations, 75 FR 404 (Jan. 5, 2010).
38

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enforcement agencies who contact ICE requesting assistance. SEN also includes data on
individuals who are of interest to ICE but are not necessarily part of a past or anticipated encounter
in support of its law enforcement intelligence function.
Associated Compliance Documentation:
PIA: DHS/ICE/PIA-023 Significant Event Notification System41
SORN:
•

DHS/ICE-006 Intelligence Records System42

•

DHS/ICE-009 External Investigations43

Ingest/Refresh Schedule: Daily

ICE Subpoena System (ISS)
Datasets: ICE uses ISS to automate the process of generating, logging, and tracking subpoenas,
notices, and summonses that ICE issues in furtherance of its investigations into violations of
customs and immigration laws. ISS retains ICE employee and case data for the individual who
created the document and the case it pertains to; data regarding the recipient of the subpoena or
summons, data regarding the target of the subpoena or summons, and commercial information
regarding telephone service providers to identify owners of particular telephone numbers.
Associated Compliance Documentation:
PIA: DHS/ICE/PIA-027 ICE Subpoena System44
SORN: DHS/ICE-009 External Investigations45
Ingest/Refresh Schedule: Daily

Southwest Border Transaction Record Analysis Center (TRAC)
Datasets: TRAC is a centralized searchable database that contains information about the financial
transactions made by global money services businesses (MSBs). The term "money services
business" includes any person doing business in one or more of the following capacities: currency
dealer or exchanger; check casher; Issuer/Seller/Redeemer of traveler's checks or money orders;

41

See DHS/ICE/PIA-023 Significant Event Notification System, available at www.dhs.gov/privacy.
DHS/ICE-006 Intelligence Records System (IIRS), 75 FR 9233 (March 1, 2010).
43
DHS/ICE-009 External Investigations, 75 FR 404 (Jan. 5, 2010).
44
See DHS/ICE/PIA-027 ICE Subpoena System, available at www.dhs.gov/privacy.
45
DHS/ICE-009 External Investigations, 75 FR 404 (Jan. 5, 2010).
42

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or transmitter for money wires.46 TRAC provides data and analysis to over 200 law enforcement
and regulatory agencies with jurisdiction over money laundering or criminal activity near the
southwest border.
Associated Compliance Documentation:
PIA: None. This is a database run by a state government.
SORN: None. This is a database run by a state government.
Ingest/Refresh Schedule: RAVEn will facilitate on-demand queries of the TRAC and will retain
the results while the information is relevant to the HSI case for which it was queried. This retention
is governed by an MOU.
Privacy Risk: There is a risk that TRAC may misuse or may not properly safeguard ICE
data, as it is not governed by the Privacy Act and has no applicable privacy compliance
documentation.
Mitigation: This risk is mitigated. RAVEn only ingests data from TRAC; ICE does not
share data with TRAC. All queries will be created using non-identifying information, such as date
ranges or transaction types. There is no mechanism to share or push data to TRAC within the
RAVEn platform.
Privacy Risk: There is a risk that an individual may not know their information collected
by TRAC will be used for a law enforcement purpose.
Mitigation: This risk is not mitigated. TRAC records are collected from commercial
entities in the MSB. Notice to customers about cooperation with law enforcement is dependent
upon the MSB.

Department of the Treasury Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN)
Datasets: FinCEN captures information from forms filed by financial institutions in the United
States on transactions that exceed certain dollar threshold amounts or may appear on the face of
the transaction to be furthering illicit activities. The information is collected via Bank Secrecy Act
forms, which include subject biographic information, bank account information, occupation,
passport number, country, amount and type of transactions, and other relevant information
regarding the financial transaction that an individual has conducted.

46

A full definition of “Money services business” is provided in 31 CFR 1010.100(ff).

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Associated Compliance Documentation:
PIA: FinCEN PIA-Data Collection, Storage, and Dissemination47
SORN: Treasury/FinCEN .003 – Bank Secrecy Act Reports System48
Ingest/Refresh Schedule: Daily

Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) National Crime Information Center (NCIC)
Datasets: The NCIC is a national database maintained by the FBI accessible for use by every
criminal justice agency and law enforcement agency nationwide. The NCIC is a computer index
of criminal justice information as reported to the FBI by law enforcement agencies throughout the
United States and internationally. The NCIC contains records on both property and persons,
including warrants, protection orders, stolen property, wanted persons, missing persons, victims
of identity theft, violent gangs, terrorists, and other persons of interest to law enforcement. The
Interstate Identification Index, which contains automated criminal history record information, is
accessible through the NCIC.49
Associated Compliance Documentation:
PIA: Privacy Impact Assessment National Crime Information Center (NCIC)50
SORN: JUSTICE/FBI-001 National Crime Information Center (NCIC)51
Ingest/Refresh Schedule: RAVEn will facilitate on demand queries of the NCIC and will retain
this information while the information is relevant to the HSI case for which it was queried.

Office of Biometric Identity Management (OBIM) Automated Biometric System (IDENT)
and Homeland Advanced Recognition Technology (HART)
Datasets: OBIM’s authoritative biometric database, the Automated Biometric Identification
System (IDENT), is the central DHS-wide system for the storage and processing of biometric data.
IDENT stores and processes biometric data—digital fingerprints, facial images (photographs), and
links biometrics with biographic information, immigration information, and criminal history
information associated with identities in the system. OBIM is currently modernizing the biometric
47

See Privacy Impact Assessment Data Collection, Storage, and Dissemination, available at
https://www.fincen.gov/sites/default/files/shared/FinCEN_DCSD_PIA.pdf.
48
FinCEN .003 - Bank Secrecy Act Reports System - 79 FR 20969 (Apr. 14, 2014).
49
For more information on the Interstate Identity Index see https://www.bjs.gov/content/pub/pdf/iiince.pdf.
50
See Federal Bureau of Investigation Privacy Impact Assessment of the National Crime Information Center
available at https://www.fbi.gov/file-repository/pia-ncic.pdf/view.
51
JUSTICE/FBI-001 National Crime Information Center (NCIC), 84 FR 47533 (Sept. 10, 2019).

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database, which will be redeployed as the Homeland Advanced Recognition Technology (HART)
system.
Associated Compliance Documentation:
PIA: DHS/OBIM/PIA-001 Automated Biometric Identification System (IDENT)52
SORN: DHS/ALL-041 External Biometric Records (EBR)53
Ingest/Refresh Schedule: RAVEn will facilitate on demand queries of IDENT/HART and will
retain this information while the information is relevant to the HSI case for which it was queried.

U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) National Finance Center (NFC) Payroll System
Datasets: NFC is a Government-wide payroll system owned by the USDA that is used to set up
federal employee payroll profiles as well as manage payment of salary and benefits. Datasets
loaded into RAVEn contains ICE employee personnel information.
Associated Compliance Documentation:
PIA: DHS/ALL/PIA-053 DHS Financial Management Systems54
SORN: DHS/ALL-019 Department of Homeland Security Payroll, Personnel and Time
and Attendance Records55
Ingest/Refresh Schedule: HR data is used for the purposes of personnel visualization in the I-GIS
portal and will be updated on an ad hoc basis by the group owner.

Social Security Administration (SSA) Earnings Recording and Self-Employment Income
System from the Master Earnings File (MEF)
Datasets: The Master Earnings File (MEF) contains individual earnings histories for each of the
350+ million Social Security numbers (SSN) that have been assigned to workers. These earnings
histories are the basis for determinations of eligibility for retirement, survivor, disability and health
insurance benefits programs of the Social Security Act and for computations of benefit amounts
payable under both of those programs. SSA will transmit to ICE earnings data reported on SSN
assigned to non-immigrants who are not authorized to be employed, as required by section
52

See DHS/OBIM/PIA-001 Automated Biometric Information System (IDENT), available at
www.dhs.gov/privacy. DHS is retiring IDENT and replacing it with the Homeland Advanced Recognition
Technology System (HART), which will be discussed in a forthcoming PIA.
53
DHS/ALL-041 External Biometric Records (EBR), 83 FR 17829 (April 24, 2018).
54
See DHS/ALL/PIA-053 DHS Financial Management Systems available at www.dhs.gov/privacy.
55
DHS/ALL-019 Department of Homeland Security Payroll, Personnel and Time and Attendance Records, 80 FR
58283 (September 28, 2015).

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290(c)(2) of the Immigration and Nationality Act.56 HSI will use this data to determine who may
be violating the terms of their admission to the United States. SSA will share the following data
elements: SSN, full name, address, employer’s name, employer’s address, amount of earnings, and
tax year.
Associated Compliance Documentation:
PIA: 016-00-SSA/DCS-M-004 Earnings Record Maintenance System57
SORN: Earnings Recording and Self-Employment Income System (MEF) SORN, 60005958
Ingest/Refresh Schedule: Data will be transmitted by SSA annually. Records will be purged after
they are processed by RAVEn unless certain data is marked as pertinent to an ICE investigation.

Small Business Administration (SBA) Paycheck Protection Program and Economic Injury
Disaster Loan Data
Datasets: The Council of the Inspectors General on Integrity and Efficiency (CIGIE) Pandemic
Response Accountability Committee (PRAC) will furnish a copy of the Small Business
Administration (SBA)’s Paycheck Protection Program Loan-Level Data (PPP Data) and Economic
Injury Disaster Loan-Level Data (EIDL Data) to HSI. PRAC will contribute data related to
companies who have applied for and/or received economic relief from the SBA under the PPP
and/or EIDL programs. This data will include biographical data, financial data, corporate
workforce data (number of employees and duration of employment), and nationality data where
that information is known. The purpose of HSI conducting checks against its data holdings is to
identify companies who pose a high risk of defrauding the U.S. Government.
Associated Compliance Documentation:
PIA: Office of Capital Access, Capital Access Financial System Privacy Impact
Assessment.59
SORN: SBA 35-Non-Employment Related Background Checks60
Ingest/Refresh Schedule: Data will be transmitted by PRAC on an ad hoc basis as the dataset is
updated. Records will be retained in accordance with HSI’s records retention schedule.
56

(INA; 8 U.S.C. § 1360(c)(2)).
016-00-SSA/DCS-M-004 Earnings Record Maintenance System Privacy Impact Assessment, available at
https://www.ssa.gov/privacy/pia/Earnings%20Record%20Maintenance%20System.updtd%20Sept%2028.htm
58
71 Fed. Reg. 1819 (January 11, 2006).
59
See Office of Capital Access, Capital Access Financial System Privacy Impact Assessment, available at
https://www.sba.gov/sites/default/files/2021-06/SBA%20CAFS%20PIA%20FY21.pdf.
60
74 FR 14889 (April 1, 2009).
57

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APPENDIX B
Analytical Tools61
Name: Lead Tracking Tool (LTT)
Purpose and Use:
The RAVEn Lead Tracking Tool (LTT) is designed to address the operational needs of
HSI field offices by providing a centralized and formalized way to capture lead referrals and
outcomes. HSI uses the LTT for initiating, adjudicating, tracking, and collecting and reporting
statistics on investigative leads. In the past, HSI managed this process via repeated emails and
phone calls and documented the results locally at a field office on a spreadsheet. LTT automates
this process and provides greater efficiency in lead management and accuracy in reporting.
The LTT is a role-based application, meaning that a user’s system access is defined by their
rights and permissions. The application hosts two roles: lead creators (users responsible for
developing and referring leads) and lead recipients (users responsible for accepting or rejecting a
lead). Lead creators can create and modify all information; lead recipients can add additional
information such as people and businesses, attachments and notes, but cannot modify the lead
information itself.
The LTT captures, saves, and shares lead generation information manually input by HSI
field offices and then captures the outcomes of the leads provided to other HSI field offices. The
LTT provides a workflow that guides the lead creator and recipient through a series of steps:
1. An HSI field office discovers a lead that requires follow up by another HSI field
office. The initial field office creates a lead within the LTT and routes it to a lead
recipient in the other field office.
2.

The recipient field office determines whether follow-up action is required. It can
either accept the lead for follow up or reject the lead.

3. The recipient field office then provides feedback in the LTT to the creator in the
form of reasons for rejection or outcomes of the follow up.
When creating the leads, the lead creator can indicate specifics such as lead type, lead
source, seizure date, and lead priority from drop-down menus in LTT data fields. Once a lead is
created, the LTT automatically generates an email to the lead recipient. A lead creator may attach
program codes to leads, which are used to track investigative and enforcement efforts agencywide. The codes help to facilitate statistical reporting that may otherwise have gone untracked.
The lead creator can also add general identifying information on relevant persons or businesses.

61

This Appendix will be updated when new tools are added to the RAVEn environment.

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When an HSI field office sends a lead to a recipient using the LTT, that recipient will
receive an email notification that includes a hyperlink to the LTT. From the LTT, the recipient can
view all the information entered into the system by the lead creator. A recipient may accept or
reject a lead, as well as add additional recipients (including recipients from additional field offices)
to that lead. If a lead is rejected, the recipient must select the reason for the rejection from a
provided list. Current selections for rejection are “Insufficient Resources available,” “Declined by
Assistant United States Attorney,” and “Other.”
When a lead is accepted and worked by the recipient, he or she can then provide feedback
in the form of outcomes to the lead creator. The lead outcome workflow in the LTT allows the
recipient to provide the lead creator with information such as if an enforcement action took place,
if arrests or seizures were made, and/or additional persons were identified in the course of the
investigation. These metrics have typically not been reported back to a lead creator under the
current HSI lead dissemination process. The LTT not only provides closure to lead creators, but
also enables detailed statistical reporting that was previously unavailable.
Information Collected, Retained, and Disseminated:
The LTT will capture, save, and disseminate lead generation information input by HSI field
offices and then capture the outcomes of the leads provided to other HSI field offices.
Information collected, retained, and disseminated could incorporate any information
entered by a lead creator that he or she deems relevant to the lead. This information can be
manually derived from any of the datasets ingested by RAVEn for which the user has permission
to access.62 Lead information can include: biographical information (name, date of birth, address,
etc.), immigration and travel history, citizenship, known family and associates, criminal history,
passport or national identification information, organizational information, financial information,
employment data, vehicle information, educational history, and case information derived from an
investigation (which may include telecommunications data, location information, or information
derived from publicly available social media).
Individuals Impacted:
Individuals who are subject to ICE investigations and are material to investigative leads
(i.e., subjects of investigation, family members of subjects, known associates). Individuals who
are material to leads may be U.S. citizens or lawful permanent residents.

62

For a complete list of ingested system and their associated datasets, please see appendix A of this PIA.

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Additional Privacy Risks and Mitigations:
Privacy Risk: Because the LTT contains information from multiple data sources, there is
a risk of creating a lead with inaccurate data or more information than is necessary for the purpose
of the lead referral.
Mitigation: This risk is partially mitigated. Lead creation is a manual process and all lead
creators undergo user training which stresses the importance of confirming the accuracy of
information entered into a lead. Personnel who use the LTT are HSI agents or analysts who are
trained on effectively analyzing the information they collect to determine whether it is helpful in
developing a lead. The data fields within the LTT are restricted to those that fulfill the purpose of
creating and referring a lead.
Privacy Risk: The LTT may refer or disclose information to personnel who are not
authorized to access the information
Mitigation: This risk is mitigated. Access to leads is determined by RAVEn’s user-based
access controls. Lead users may only view leads within the same office as either the creator or the
recipient. HSI Innovation Lab limits lead generation capability to select HSI Offices and agents
working on certain cases. Lead creators may only include data in a lead from a RAVEn dataset to
which they have access. Recipients will only have access to data contained within the lead that
was referred, and further restrictions on the information can be added depending on the data linked
to the lead. All LTT users are trained to disseminate information to only those individuals with a
need-to-know to accomplish their respective missions. Lead recipients will only be able to view
the information entered into the lead, as receipt of a lead does not grant any permissions or access
to any other RAVEn tool or data. Further, users agree to accept the RAVEn system’s terms of use,
including protecting against unauthorized or improper use or access. HSI Innovation Lab or an
LTT user’s supervisor can revoke a user’s access in the case of misuse.

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Name: Natural Language Processing (NLP)
Purpose and Use:
The HSI Innovation Lab uses Natural Language Processing (NLP) on the narrative sections
of raw datasets ingested by RAVEn. Typically, datasets such as reports to have structured fields
(e.g., dates, times, or locations) and narrative portions entered into unstructured data fields. NLP
is a type of Artificial Intelligence whereby a system is trained to recognize, understand, and
analyze human language as it is naturally written. Since every individual writes differently (e.g.,
unique syntax, grammar, terminology, and use of slang or abbreviations), it is difficult for standard
analytical systems to process the narrative data. NLP allows a system not only to extract meaning
of text from stand-alone words or terms, but also from whole sentences. The technology has to be
trained to search the narrative for specific information, so HSI Innovation Lab must identify, in
consultation with the end-users, which words, phrases, or concepts should be targeted for analysis.
HSI Innovation Lab must then train the NLP until it recognizes text and patterns. NLP cannot be
deployed for a program or project until it successfully recognizes and extracts information and
associations as confirmed by HSI Innovation Lab in a testing dataset. The process requires intense
labor and time for development before the technology can be used to search for specific data. NLP,
therefore, can only be used for narrowly defined and pre-determined investigative purposes within
RAVEn.
NLP analyzes the investigative free text narratives and some structured data fields to
extract entities (e.g., individuals, businesses, vehicles, phone numbers, or addresses) and identify
interconnections (i.e., relationships and patterns). NLP analysis can identify relationships across
datasets that might not otherwise have been found. For example, a narrative section of an
investigative report may include a subject’s family ties or points of contact. The NLP tool can
analyze the written text in the narrative to determine that an individual listed as a father in one
report is also a point of contact in a second report, and a business owner in a third report. This
previously unknown connection allows HSI to further analyze potential connections between the
individual and persons in seemingly disparate HSI law enforcement actions.
Information Collected, Retained, and Disseminated:
NLP analyzes narrative sections of DHS law enforcement investigatory records.63 A
narrative entry could include any information collected or observed by a DHS agent or officer
(including Border Patrol Agents, Customs and Border Protection Officers, ICE Officers, and HSI
Special Agents) that he or she deems relevant to the law enforcement encounter or activity. The
unstructured data field may include: biographical information (name, date of birth, address, etc.),
63

Currently the Natural Language Processing tool is used for analyzing narrative sections from DHS Form I-213,
Record of Deportable/Inadmissible Alien, which is stored in EID, and ICE Reports of Investigation. As more source
systems are entered into the NLP tool, Appendix A of this PIA will be updated.

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immigration and travel history, citizenship, familial ties, criminal history, humanitarian claims
made by an individual, and passport or national identification information. Narrative sections
could also contain information about individuals associated with the subject who are deemed
relevant to the law enforcement activity, action, or investigation, for example a subject’s
emergency point of contact information.
Individuals Impacted:
The NLP tool may analyze the PII of individuals who are encountered or investigated by
DHS agents or officers, including information about individuals related to or associates of a subject
encountered during a law enforcement investigation.
Additional Privacy Risks and Mitigations:
Privacy Risk: There is a risk that more information will be ingested into the NLP tool than
is needed to conduct the analysis.
Mitigation: This risk is partially mitigated. As noted above, the data is ingested for
analysis by the NLP tool from DHS investigative records systems. The DHS officers who collected
or recorded the information are trained to note only information relevant to a law enforcement
activity. By design, ingested data may contain more information than is needed, but the NLP tool
is trained to recognize information relevant to an investigation. NLP only extracts entities and
relationships that it was trained to find. When the NLP tool creates an analytical product or report,
only information deemed by an analyst or agent to be of investigative value or that identifies illicit
activity will be referred as part of an investigative lead.
Privacy Risk: There is a risk that using the NLP tool on unstructured datasets will result
in data errors and the use of incorrect data in investigative analyses.
Mitigation: This risk is partially mitigated. NLP use across these datasets is governed by
query or search parameters established by HSI Innovation Lab personnel and believed to be likely
to produce relevant results. All analytical products are reviewed and refined by at least one analyst
or agent before a lead is referred to the field; this human interaction with information allows for
the identification of a need to refine NLP parameters to reduce data errors.
Privacy Risk: There is a risk that individuals will not be given adequate notice that their
information will be subject to NLP analysis by ICE.
Mitigation: This risk is partially mitigated. The publication of this PIA helps to mitigate
the lack of direct notice to the individual whose information is analyzed by RAVEn. This PIA
provides a description of the types of records that will be placed into RAVEn on a routine or ad
hoc basis, the purposes for which the information will be used by ICE and the tools, including
NLP, that will be used to analyze the data. All records analyzed by NLP are either a DHS Officer’s
recorded interactions with the public or findings in an investigation. Direct notice for RAVEn’s

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use of investigative data cannot be mitigated due to concerns of alerting individuals of an ongoing
investigation.

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Name: ICE Geographic Information Systems (GIS) Portal
Purpose and Use:
The ICE GIS Portal is a mapping platform for visualization and analytics of geospatial and
geolocation data. GIS will house data, some of which may contain PII, paired with location
information. The ICE GIS Portal allows ICE enterprise users to securely share geospatial
information on critical infrastructure, law enforcement data, imagery, and other user-defined
geospatial data; as well as perform spatial analyses such as querying,64 geocoding, routing
functions,65 and zonal statistics.66
The ICE GIS Portal acts as a service and platform provider and does not create or own the
data managed and shared within. The ICE GIS Portal allows for collaboration and sharing of
datasets, maps, applications, and other geographic information between groups and among other
system users. The GIS Portal is unique to other RAVEn tools in that is not restricted to HSI use
and is intended to be an ICE-wide tool. The ICE GIS Portal also supports other RAVEn tools.
RAVEn tools requiring mapping or visualization of location data can leverage the GIS Portal
mapping tools natively within their own application without sharing any information with the ICE
GIS Portal. The ICE GIS Portal provides the following capabilities:
•

Secure access to enterprise geospatial information (i.e., imagery, base maps);

•

Mapping and visualization services;

•

Geospatial tools and analytic services;

•

Geocoding; and

•

Web application templates.

The GIS Portal has a default internal geocoder. Geocoding is the process of assigning map
coordinates to data like a physical address. Geocoding can be used in reverse as well, giving a
physical address to coordinates selected on a map. Some geocoding information cannot be verified
by HSI Innovation Lab, such as when an address is in a foreign country with restrictions on sharing
geolocation data. HSI Innovation Lab will then use an external geocoder supplied by a vendor.
When using an external geocoder, HSI only sends addresses to the vendor, and does not include
any of the paired data or additional information. The vendor will then match the physical address
with a map coordinate and return the data back to the GIS Portal.

64

Querying is a filtering and search function for the data paired with location information (i.e., find all ICE Offices
in a geographic location).
65
Routing Functions show pathways between geolocations (i.e., quickest route, shortest route).
66
Zonal Statistics are values calculated by data that resides within determined geographical zones.

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GIS Portal users are limited to individuals with access and credentials on the ICE network.
All ICE employees have access to the ICE GIS Portal after signing a rules of behavior (ROB)
which specifies the appropriate uses of the GIS Portal. Access to the platform only provides the
user the ability to visualize geospatial data. Data within the system or created by other users is
restricted. A user’s access to maps or information is dependent upon their role and/or group
assignment. All initial accounts have a Viewer role in the system and must request to access a
Group or have roles elevated to Power User, Group Owner, or Administrator.
•

•

•

•

•

•

Groups - a collection of users and datasets, often related to a specific region, subject, or
project, that are created and managed by the group owner. Members of the group can share
and edit information only within the group. Group Owners and Administrators can add
members to the group.
Viewer - can view content shared with all portal users and ask to join groups or add data
to a map. A viewer cannot share any data (either with a group or other member on the
system).
Power User – is able to see a customized view of the site, use the group's maps,
applications, layers, and analytic tools. Power Users can also create maps and applications,
edit features, add items to the portal, and view and share content with the Groups of which
they are members.
Group Owner – is like a Power User but can also approve requests and add members to
Groups. Group Owners are the only non-Administrator users that can share data with all
ICE GIS Portal users. To mitigate incorrect dissemination of data, the number of Group
Owners is limited. Group Owners are trained on requirements for granting access and
disseminating information within GIS.
Administrator - can see all data and groups within the site. Administrators can create new
groups and change the ownership of groups and data. Administrators can directly bulk load
users to the ICE GIS system and assign them to groups. Administrators are the only users
that can change an ICE GIS Portal user role. This user role will be limited in number.
Senior Leader - can see all data within the system but will not have the ability to create or
change data in the system. The Senior Leader role is limited to Associate Director level
and above and is only granted when requested by Group Owners.

Information Collected, Retained, and Disseminated:
The ICE GIS Portal contains data that is consistent with the ICE mission and authorities.
All data remains under the ownership of the users that provide it (i.e., individual ICE GIS Portal
users or ICE GIS Portal Data providers). There are no restrictions on the amount or type of data
elements that may be used by the GIS Portal. The GIS Portal uses a combination of data created
by users and data pulled from both ICE datasets and external datasets. External datasets provide

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baseline geospatial points to enrich a map and can be chosen by Power Users or Group Owners to
incorporate into their maps. They include publicly available data from other federal agencies
(National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration,67 Federal Emergency Management Agency,68
Department of Energy,69 and the Department of Commerce70) and state and local governments
(road, imagery, or infrastructure data). Any GIS Power User or higher can also add data from a
system from which they have permission to share. This information could include biographical
data, data derived from investigations or arrests, or financial transactions.71
Additional Privacy Risks and Mitigations:
Privacy Risk: There is a risk data will be shared with individuals who are not authorized
to view the information or do not have a need-to-know.
Mitigation: This risk is mitigated. GIS Portal data cannot be shared outside the system.
All Group Owners are trained and sign Rules of Behavior (ROB) stipulating that they will verify
the need-to-know of any users requesting access to a group with data that contains PII. Only two
user roles, Group Owners and Administrators, can share data layers with other groups on the GIS
Portal. This limitation reduces errors in data sharing. All data shared within the ICE GIS platform
is monitored by GIS Portal administrators in a data usage dashboard to insure no data is improperly
disseminated.
Privacy Risk: There is a risk that a user may ingest, upload, or share inaccurate
information on the GIS.
Mitigation: This risk is not mitigated. Source systems are responsible for the accuracy of
information within their databases that is ingested by the GIS Portal. In addition, users of the GIS
Portal maintain full control of the data that they upload (e.g., information taken from spreadsheets)
to the GIS Portal. There is a screen that presents to all users when they log onto the GIS Portal that
states that users are responsible for managing their own data. Other users of a GIS group may
inform the Group Owner of any information on the GIS platform that appears to be incorrect, but
it is the responsibility of the data owner to update the information. All Group Owners are trained
and sign a ROB stating they are responsible for the quality of the data they share.
Privacy Risk: There is a risk that information within the GIS Portal may be used in a
manner that is inconsistent with the original purpose of its collection.
67

For more information see https://www.weather.gov/gis/.
For more information see https://gis.fema.gov/.
69
For more information see https://edx.netl.doe.gov/group/doe-gis-group.
70
For more information see https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/geography.html.
71
The GIS Portal currently holds a dataset generated from addresses extracted from officer arrest and encounter
reports derived from EID and ICE personnel data provided by ICE Human Resources. As more systems are added to
GIS and RAVEn, Appendix A of this PIA will be updated.
68

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Mitigation: All users of the system are bound by the code of conduct under the ROB they
sign to receive access to the system. A user may only upload information into GIS from systems
that he or she has been granted the authority to collect and permission to share. Administrators of
the GIS Portal routinely monitor data creation on the system and will revoke a user’s access if
information is used for a purpose in violation of the ROB. Further, any system-to-system
connection made with the GIS Portal is subject to a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) or
other information sharing agreement in which the connection must be explained and justified.
Privacy Risk: There is a risk that GIS may retain information longer than permitted by the
data’s retention schedule.
Mitigation: This risk is not mitigated. All data is controlled by the data owner and the GIS
Portal does not have a mechanism to track the retention periods of user data. All Group Owners
are trained and sign a ROB stating they are responsible for proper maintenance of the data they
share.

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Name: Optical Character Recognition (OCR) Tool
Purpose and Use:
Many large scale HSI investigations involve the examination and processing of paper
documents retrieved by agents. Optical Character Recognition, or OCR, is a technology that
enables a system to convert different types of documents, such as scanned paper documents, PDF
files, or images captured by a digital camera, into machine-readable text data. The OCR Tool is
designed to ingest large quantities of hard-copy records into the RAVEn environment for auditors,
analysts, or agents to ensure individuals and businesses are in compliance with labor, customs, and
immigration laws. The OCR tool application provides greater efficiency and accuracy in HSI
investigations that require entry of information from hard-copy documents into electronic systems
for further analysis.
The RAVEn OCR tool is only used for typed forms that contain delineated and structured
data fields, such as name blocks. The OCR tool must be customized for each type of form it reads
to analyze specific data fields on that form before it can be used. In order to do this, HSI Innovation
Lab first divides an image into lines, words, and then characters. Once the characters have been
isolated, the OCR tool will compare each character to a set of training images annotated by HSI
Innovation Lab. The OCR tool then makes a hypothesis about what alphabetical or numerical
character is present in the image. HSI Innovation Lab personnel then confirm whether the
hypothesis was correct. By training an OCR tool against a large number of training data, these
programs can make highly accurate hypotheses about characters in bounded data fields.
This effort is intended to get maximum value from appropriate implementation and tuning
of an OCR tool. As part of this project, additional research and development related to improving
the accuracy of OCR, particularly related to handwriting, is required. In the future, HSI Innovation
Lab plans to build an in-house handwriting recognition solution to process handwritten forms. This
appendix entry will be updated accordingly.
The OCR tool will only be used on scanned forms that were acquired through a formal law
enforcement request for information (warrants, subpoenas, and notices of inspection). The OCR
tool will automate the process of transferring data from a scanned form into RAVEn, thus
increasing efficiency and reducing human error. The OCR tool is designed with an interface for a
user to compare the data fields that were auto-filled by the OCR tool against a scanned copy of the
form. The user must manually verify that all entries by the OCR are correct before the work product
is saved to RAVEn. The OCR tool does not analyze the information that it transfers to RAVEn
and is not paired with any technology to identify trends or patterns within the OCR tool’s output.
There is always an ICE auditor, analyst, or agent monitoring and verifying the work product
produced by OCR prior to any further action or manipulation of the data.

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Information Collected, Retained, and Disseminated:
The OCR tool will be used to analyze structured fields in standardized hard-copy (paper)
documents.72 These records are scanned directly into the RAVEn platform. On an ad-hoc basis
HSI agents and analysts will upload scanned forms into RAVEn. Scanned documents are treated
as manual uploads and will be retained after upload for 20 years after the case has closed. The
scanned form, like any other data manually uploaded to RAVEn, will only be accessible to HSI
agents and analysts designated by the user who uploaded the file. The structured information can
include: biographical information (name, date of birth, address, etc.), employer information,
translator information, and passport or national identification information.
Individuals Impacted:
Individuals and businesses subject to a law enforcement request for information (subpoena,
warrant, notice of investigation, request for information) by HSI.
Additional Privacy Risks and Mitigations:
Privacy Risk: There is a risk that more information than is needed will be ingested into
the OCR tool.
Mitigation: This risk is mitigated. The OCR tool is designed to only analyze specifically
bounded fields in pre-determined documents. Thus, the only documents uploaded into the RAVEn
environment for use by the OCR tool are those the HSI Innovation Lab has trained the tool to
analyze. The data that is then extracted during the OCR process is specified through pre-set
bounding fields developed to identify the exact data field locations to be processed. Data fields
outside the bounding areas are not captured by the tool.
Privacy Risk: There is a risk that using the OCR tool will result in data errors and the use
of incorrect data in investigative analyses.
Mitigation: This risk is partially mitigated. The OCR tool will only auto-fill characters it
is able to identify. The system will prompt the user to manually review any fields that the OCR
tool cannot decipher. If a document is too damaged to read, scanned poorly, or uses an
unrecognized font, the OCR tool will not conjecture what the character could be. There are also
instances where the OCR tool may make the wrong hypothesis as to the character presented in the
image. For example, it may mistake the lowercase letter l for the number 1. In all cases, however,
an HSI analyst, agent, or auditor, must manually verify the OCR work product against the scanned
copy before it is saved in RAVEn.

72

Currently the OCR tool is analyzing biographical sections from DHS Form I-9, Employment Eligibility
Verification. As more datasets are entered into the OCR tool, Appendix A of this PIA will be updated.

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Name: RAVEn Collaborate, Organize, Research, Explore (CORE)
Purpose and Use:
In an increasingly digital world, HSI must expand its ability to extract and analyze the vast
volumes of data it encounters over the course of a wide range of investigative categories. The
purpose of RAVEn is centered upon providing more effective tools to address this challenge.
Collaborate, Organize, Research, Explore (CORE) is the main search and analytic tool for all
RAVEn data and any additional future data holdings that HSI will acquire. CORE enhances HSI’s
ability to conduct data analytics, which will be used to identify criminal trends and links among
investigative targets that HSI had not previously identified.
CORE provides a simple, easy-to-use search bar, similar to widely used publicly available
search engines, from which users search RAVEn datasets. CORE allows users to sort, filter, group,
and compare search results from these datasets. These functionalities are available at the data
element level and can also be run on the metadata and data tags of the records ingested into
RAVEn. This includes data in free text fields, as well as structured data fields. CORE can also
assist users in discovering relationships between disparate data by linking and organizing different
data elements (e.g., temporally or geographically). Through these methods, users can identify
evidence relevant to criminal investigations that are difficult to extract or locate in large datasets.
CORE users can customize their investigative or analytical workflow by displaying search
results from multiple data sources in one workspace, called a “canvas.” When a user conducts a
search within CORE, the results are displayed in a search pane. From that search pane, users can
select or drag and drop the relevant results onto the canvas. Users may also import and add external
data, such as subpoena return results and publicly available information, to the canvas. The canvas
owner can share the canvas and the data contained therein with others by creating a collaborative
team associated with that particular canvas and adding users to the team. Within the canvas, users
can use the returned datasets to build out and analyze criminal networks and associations, as well
as represent linkages of data by creating maps, charts, timelines, and graphs. CORE allows for
different methods to visualize data within RAVEn, but it does not alter original source system data.
The canvas can be exported in multiple file formats, as well as shared within CORE across a
collaborative team. All changes to the canvas are automatically saved within the RAVEn platform.
The analytic results of the data, however, are only maintained so long as the data remains in
RAVEn. If the source system that feeds RAVEn deletes a record, the data in that record will no
longer be available to the user. Users can also share the analytical data and results with limited
numbers of other users who have the necessary permissions to view both the data and the related
shared canvas.
CORE aggregates data from various sources and allows users to analyze and share the data
in analytically useful ways. RAVEn’s data ingest and indexing process from external sources into

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RAVEn’s operational data store is key to making these operations more efficient. HSI Innovation
Lab created and optimized custom Extract, Transform, Load (ETL) pipelines for various data
sources and data types. Through this ETL process, ingested data is normalized and deduplicated,
and entity resolution is performed. To reduce any discrepancies between source systems and
CORE, data ingests occur frequently to refresh and update the data. While the CORE tool will
have access to nearly all datasets available within the RAVEn platform, HSI personnel may only
use CORE to access data associated with their individual RAVEn user permissions and for which
they have a designated need-to-know.
The output from CORE may be an organized report or network chart that captures the most
pertinent evidence discovered via the application. Examples of these outputs are connections
between previously unlinked HSI investigations, new investigative leads, or charts of relationships
between targets of an investigation. Information and analyses generated within CORE which
pertain to an ongoing investigation will be added to the relevant case file/case management system
manually by the reviewing analyst or agent. CORE does not share information externally from
RAVEn. The format of the reports will enable use in other HSI law enforcement systems,
principally HSI’s Investigative Case Management system (ICM).73
CORE also has an integrated chat functionality that facilitates collaboration across
investigative teams, as well as between HSI offices. This collaboration is essential for identifying
targets being investigated by multiple offices, resolving any conflicts, and coordinating linked
investigations between HSI offices.
As an application within RAVEn, CORE will possess the same technical, administrative,
and physical safeguards as other tools within the RAVEn environment. Data retention and user
access is controlled at the record level. Ad hoc uploads of data into RAVEn for use in CORE is
assigned the same case number that is associated with an ongoing investigation. HSI supervisors
approve any ad hoc data loaded into RAVEn for use in CORE. RAVEn complies with all auditing
and logging requirements and tracks all user activities within CORE, including executed searches
and results.
Information Collected, Retained, and Disseminated:
Since CORE is available for use on all datasets searchable within RAVEn, potentially any
dataset listed within Appendix A of this PIA can be searched by a user if he or she has the
appropriate access.74 Record types and data elements searchable by RAVEn CORE include:

73

Supra note 3
For more information on RAVEn potential pool of data, see DHS/ICE-018 Analytical Records, 86 FR 15246
(March 22, 2021), available at https://www.dhs.gov/system-records-notices-sorns.
74

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•

Biographic information and identifying numbers that reside in source systems;

•

Financial data, including data reported pursuant to the Bank Secrecy Act (e.g., certain
transactions over $10,000) and other financial data obtained via official investigations,
legal processes, or legal settlements;

•

Licensing information related to applications by individuals or businesses to hold or
retain a customs broker’s license, operate a customs-bonded warehouse, or be a bonded
carrier or bonded cartman;

•

Trade analysis data, including trade identifier numbers (e.g., for manufacturers importers,
exporters, and customs brokers) and bill of lading data (e.g., consignee names and
addresses, shipper names and addresses, container numbers, carriers); other financial data
related to trade required for the detection and analysis of financial irregularities and
crimes;

•

Location-related data, including address; geotags from metadata associated with other
record categories collected; and geolocation information derived from authorized law
enforcement activities, ICE-owned devices, witness statements, or commercially
available data;

•

Law enforcement records, including criminal history, subject records, and investigative
records; visa security information; and trade-based and financial sanction screening lists;

•

Open source information, including news articles or other data available to the public on
the internet or in public records, including content from the dark net and publicly
available information from social media;

•

Commercially available data, including public and proprietary records available for a
subscription;

•

Cargo and border crossing data, including inbound/outbound shipment records and
border crossing information;

•

Information or evidence seized or otherwise lawfully obtained during the course of an
ICE investigation, including business records, third-agency records, public records (e.g.,
courts), transcripts of interviews/depositions, or records and materials seized or obtained
via subpoena or other lawful process; and

•

Tips concerning illegal or suspicious activity from the public and other law enforcement
agencies.

Individuals Impacted:
RAVEn CORE can be utilized on any dataset ingested into the RAVEn platform and can

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be used for any HSI statutory mission. Therefore, any individual whose record is in RAVEn may
be impacted by the tool. These individuals include:
•

Individuals identified in law enforcement, intelligence, crime, and incident reports
(including financial reports under the Bank Secrecy Act and law enforcement bulletins)
produced by DHS and other government agencies;

•

Individuals identified in U.S. passport, visa, border, immigration, and naturalization benefit
data, including arrival and departure data;

•

Individuals identified in DHS law enforcement, licensing, and immigration records;

•

Individuals who participate in the import or export of goods to or from the United States
or to or from nations with which the United States has entered an agreement to share trade
information;

•

Individuals (e.g., subjects, witnesses, associates, assigned government personnel)
associated with customs enforcement, immigration enforcement, administrative actions,
detainer requests, or law enforcement investigations/activities conducted by DHS; and

•

ICE personnel or personnel from partner law enforcement agencies who are mentioned in
reports that concern law enforcement operations, injuries to law enforcement personnel, or
other significant incidents reported within ICE.

Additional Privacy Risks and Mitigations:
Privacy Risk: There is a risk that users may be impaired in their ability to assess data
quality because the data is in aggregated form.
Mitigation: This risk is mitigated. RAVEn CORE identifies the source of each data
element in the search results and analytical results. As trained investigators and analysts, system
users are already familiar with the quality of the various datasets they are accessing through CORE
and can use this information to analyze and weigh the results generated by the system. HSI
Innovation Lab endeavors to ensure data from ingested sources is routinely refreshed in RAVEn
as close to real time as possible.75 This way data that is corrected in source systems is updated in
RAVEn. RAVEn’s data tagging functionality also enables users to identify data sources that might
be contributing incorrect records or otherwise poor quality data, so a user may alert HSI Innovation
Lab to follow up with the data owner for correction or other appropriate remediation. All data
available within RAVEn and displayed in CORE is linked back to the original data source,
enabling users to weigh the reliability or quality of a data element and/or independently verify the
information at the original source.

75

The schedules of source system data refreshes are discussed in Appendix A of this PIA.

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Privacy Risk: There is a risk that when disparate datasets are aggregated, the use of the
aggregated data will be inconsistent with the purpose for which the data was originally collected.
Mitigation: This risk is mitigated. ICE mitigates this risk by limiting use of CORE to
purposes that are related to the HSI mission, namely, to identify, disrupt, and dismantle
transnational criminal organizations. This is in line with the overall purpose of the RAVEn
platform. As such, HSI Innovation Lab ensures that all data can be used for that purpose prior to
its initial ingestion into the platform. HSI Innovation Lab personnel do so by entering into
information sharing agreements or similar contractual arrangements with the data holder. In that
process, HSI Innovation Lab confirms with the data holder that RAVEn’s use of the data is
compatible with the original purpose of its collection. Similarly, ad hoc data uploads would
possibly be aggregated, as well, but the original source of the data would be noted as legally
obtained through a law enforcement mechanism, such as a subpoena. CORE has logging and
auditing capabilities that track a user’s access to data and its analytical output. Thus, supervisors
and HSI Innovation Lab personnel have oversight of the CORE tool and can ensure it is only used
for law enforcement purposes. HSI Innovation Lab will also limit CORE users to HSI special
agents, criminal analysts, and full-time HSI Task Force Officers. As such, the job duties of the
personnel who access CORE will be aligned with the purpose of the tool.
Privacy Risk: There is a risk that because CORE aggregates and searches data from
multiple systems, it is possible that its users may be able access records using CORE that they
otherwise could not view in the source system and are inappropriate for them to access.
Mitigation: This risk is mitigated. For data sets routinely ingested into RAVEn, HSI has
established technical rules to ensure that the user privileges of the source system carry forward and
apply to that user in RAVEn, no matter what tool the user accesses. Permissions to ad hoc data
uploads must be manually assigned on each upload. As a result, a user’s access privileges to the
data stored in RAVEn are identical to their access privileges to that same data in the source system.
This prevents CORE from being used, intentionally or unintentionally, to undermine or defeat the
role-based access controls established by the source system.

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Name:
HORUS Application Programming Interface (API)/ JANUS Facial Recognition Algorithm
Purpose and Use:
In the course of investigations, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) routinely
encounters digital images of potential victims or individuals suspected of crimes but cannot
connect those images to identifiable information through existing investigative means and
methods. HSI, therefore, may submit those images to government agencies and commercial
vendors, hereinafter called Facial Recognition Services (FRS), to compare against the FRSs’
digital image galleries via their own facial recognition processes. The agencies and vendors query
their databases for potential matches and return lists of potential candidate matches that HSI can
use to produce investigative leads.76
HSI, through the RAVEn system, is developing a connection with approved third party
FRSs for HSI agents to submit probe photos.77 This will allow HSI to format probe photo
submissions to the American National Standards Institute (ANSI)/NIST Type 10 record format for
data exchange using a biometric image messenger on RAVEn,78 as well as to log and track all
submissions by HSI and all returns by FRSs to ensure adequate security of the data and oversight
of the use of FRSs. Other ICE offices, such as Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) do
not use this tool.
To further this effort RAVEn has incorporated the HORUS API to assist agents in detecting
faces in images, isolating faces for formatting, and clustering faces found in multiple images so
agents or analysts can choose the best image available for submission to an FRS. HORUS is a
Graphical User Interface (GUI) that will allow HSI users to submit images and visualize the results
of the JANUS Facial Recognition Algorithms in one tool. The Intelligence Advanced Research
Projects Activity (IARPA) JANUS program face recognition algorithm is the same tool used by
the Department of Defense in its Automated Biometric Identity System (ABIS).79 While many
early face recognition algorithms were developed and trained on “constrained” images with similar
poses of the subject and environmental conditions (lighting, camera distance), JANUS was
developed specifically to match images that were unconstrained and variable. JANUS moves
For more information on HSI’s facial recognition processes see DHS/ICE/PIA-054 ICE Use of Facial Recognition
Services, available at www.dhs.gov/privacy.
77
Probe photos are facial images that are lawfully obtained pursuant to an authorized criminal investigation and
submitted for facial recognition matching.
78
ANSI/NIST ITL 1-2011, Update 2015, Data Format for the Interchange of Fingerprint, Facial, and Other
Biometric Information, https://www.nist.gov/programs-projects/ansinist-itl-standard.
79
See U.S. Department of Defense PIA for Defense Automated Biometrics Identification System (DOD ABIS) and
Defense Biometric Identification Records System A0025-2 Provost Marshal General Defense Forensics and
Biometrics Agency DoD 80 Fed. Reg. 8292 (February 17, 2015) available at
https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2015/02/17/2015-03123/privacy-act-of-1974-system-of-records.
76

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beyond two-dimensional image matching into “model-based matching” that fuses all views from
whatever video and stills are available to create a composite face template of an individual. Instead
of relying on a “single best frame approach,” JANUS addresses common challenges that beset face
recognition algorithms (e.g., pose, illumination, and expression) by exploiting all available
imagery uploaded to the gallery.80 JANUS has also been vetted for accuracy and bias by the
National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST).81
HSI personnel will use HORUS to detect faces in media they have uploaded to RAVEn.
The tool will detect faces within an image or video and will isolate the images of the face for
review. The tool will also cluster similar faces within an upload (e.g., clustering multiple frames
of a video or multiple photos from a digital photo album). Users will review the cluster of isolated
face images and confirm all isolated images are the suspect or victim the user wishes to identify.
During this review process, HSI will select isolated images from the clusters that are best suited
for facial recognition processes. The HSI user will ensure he or she isolates a facial image that has
the highest image quality possible, contains the least concealment of the individual’s face, and is
most similar to a constrained image, such as a mugshot or passport photograph. This is because
HSI endeavors to isolate images as similar as possible to the galleries of images held by an FRS,
which are usually constrained. HORUS will then pass the image to a biometric image messenger
which formats the selected face image into the proper standard for submission to an FRS that is
connected to RAVEn. Those connections are noted in Appendix A of this PIA.
HSI programs may work with the HSI Innovation Lab to build a repository of images
processed by HORUS, called a gallery. These galleries are program specific and are only
accessible to users designated by the program who uploaded the data. This allows a program, prior
to submitting an image to a third-party FRS, to use HORUS to run a query against that program’s
specific gallery of images. This would allow the HSI program to link new probe photos to cases
already under investigation by that HSI program. For example, linking similar photographs that
were submitted in different benefit applications may help generate a lead on a suspect of identity
fraud. Likewise, linking two videos of human rights abuses that were generated years apart by a
common perpetrator may bolster a human rights investigation. HORUS is not capable of querying
any images outside the program’s gallery, to include other data in RAVEn and other programs’
existing HORUS galleries.
An HSI user will compare information in each case linked by HORUS to other information
available to HSI from various sources to vet the potential match outside the HORUS application.
Additional evidence leading to validation or elimination of a candidate as a possible match could
80

For more information see https://www.iarpa.gov/index.php/research-programs/janus.
The JANUS algorithm was tested by NIST in their Face Recognition Vendor Test. For more information on the
testing process, see NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF STANDARDS AND TECHNOLOGY, “Ongoing Face Recognition Vendor
Test (FRVT) Part 2: Identification” (November 2018) available at
https://nvlpubs.nist.gov/nistpubs/ir/2018/NIST.IR.8238.pdf.
81

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include biographic information, current and previous addresses, telephone numbers, vehicles,
criminal history, immigration history, and information derived from publicly available social
media. HSI agents will not attempt to act as biometric face examiners and will instead compare
HORUS returns through non-biometric investigative processes.
The HSI user will then run the probe photo against an FRS connected to RAVEn to
determine if the new image will return a list of candidates for lead generation purposes. All images
uploaded to a programmatic gallery must be submitted to an FRS, regardless of any case linkages
or information found from a HORUS link. The HSI user will then vet any candidate returns from
the FRS in accordance with HSI policy described in ICE’s FRS PIA.82 If an FRS-generated lead
ultimately results in a positive identification of an individual, all relevant data pertaining to the
individual’s case will be retained in the relevant case file or ICM.83
HORUS is not an authoritative biometric database and cannot be used alone to determine
the identity of an individual. There is no PII directly viewable with the isolated images searched
by HORUS. RAVEn does maintain original, uncropped, source data which can be viewed by a
user if they need to see the context of the file. That original image or video may contain incidental
PII (such as a scanned fraudulent identity document with name and address, or a video with an
individual shouting a name). HORUS has a splash screen disclaimer that must be accepted by users
prior to accessing HORUS. The disclaimer instructs the user that any data in addition to the image
is not verified, should be considered inaccurate, and should not be used to establish an individual’s
identity. The HORUS workflow requires all images to be ultimately run against an external FRS
to generate a lead to identify an individual. HORUS is only used for processing images prior to
submission and potentially linking cases within an HSI program’s gallery.
Image uploads to the HORUS environment will be cataloged and organized into a user
repository, called a gallery, by the HSI program. Any HSI programs that establish an ongoing
connection with HORUS will submit a Privacy Threshold Analysis (PTA) to ICE Privacy for
review of potential risks to individual privacy. HSI users are required by policy to electronically
share data uploads with their supervisors for review. The HSI supervisor will review the data while
it remains in RAVEn’s upload queue. Data will only be uploaded from the queue if it is approved
by the supervisor.
HSI users are also required to enter information describing the data being uploaded, such
as source name/category, date retrieved, and corresponding case number. RAVEn keeps an audit
log of all manual uploads by recording username and date/time of upload. When a user selects an
image to be sent to an FRS through RAVEn, the name of the FRS, the date/time of submission,
and the existence of any candidate matches are also noted within RAVEn. Images within HORUS
82
83

Supra note 1.
See DHS/ICE/PIA-045 Investigative Case Management (ICM), available at https://www.dhs.gov/privacy.

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are considered temporary, and HORUS will be routinely purged of images not associated with an
ongoing programmatic gallery. All HORUS ingested media and any FRS returns collected by an
HSI user will be retained in HSI case files or HSI electronic case management systems, such as
ICM. Images collected by HSI and determined to have no relation to a case are deleted prior to
being ingested into HORUS.
Information Collected, Retained, and Disseminated:
HORUS will process and analyze photographs, videos, or other visual media determined
to be relevant to an HSI investigation. It will create and match isolated digital face images derived
from that media. HSI will collect this information within HSI policy detailed in the PIA for ICE’s
use of FRS.84 Media within HORUS is either associated with an ongoing investigation or with an
established HSI program whose use of HORUS has been reviewed by ICE Privacy to ensure
compliance with ICE and DHS policies and applicable laws and regulations. According to HSI
program mission needs, metadata and researcher notes may be associated with the image such as
category/type of image, source of collection, date/time of collection, case number, name of HSI
user, or other data needed for cataloguing or for evidentiary purposes. The images in the gallery
will be assigned an identifier associated with the case or collection. There will not be any additional
PII associated with the media or face image within HORUS or the biometric image messenger.
Individuals Impacted:
HORUS may analyze the photographs or videos of individuals who are encountered or
investigated by HSI agents or analysts, including potential victims of a crime within HSI’s
statutory mission. Individuals captured within the photograph that may not be a target of an
investigation will not be isolated, matched, or retained in ongoing program galleries.
Additional Privacy Risks and Mitigations:
The privacy risks and mitigations below relate directly to HSI using the HORUS API for
the purposes described above. For a further discussion of the privacy risks, and corresponding
mitigations, related to HSI’s use of FRS generally, see ICE’s FRS PIA.85
Privacy Risk: There is a risk that individuals will not have sufficient notice that HSI used
their image as a probe photo in HORUS or that their information was obtained by HSI through an
FRS.
Mitigation: This risk is partially mitigated. Suspects in probe photos or identified via FRS
data may not be advised they are being investigated. Notice to these individuals could inform them
that they are the target of an actual or potential criminal investigation or reveal investigative
interest on the part of DHS or another agency. Access to the records might also permit the
84
85

Id.
Id.

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individual who is the subject of a record to impede the investigation, to tamper with witnesses or
evidence, harm victims, or to avoid detection or apprehension.
All individuals present in the United States, however, have constitutional protections in
criminal proceedings entitling them to discovery production.86 The discovery obligations of federal
criminal prosecutors are generally established by the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure 16 and
26.2, 18 U.S.C. § 3500 (the Jencks Act), Brady v. Maryland,87 and Giglio v. United States.88 In
immigration proceedings, each party is responsible for producing evidence upon which it seeks to
rely in the litigation. Therefore, if ICE seeks to use information derived from an FRS to sustain
any charge or otherwise as evidence, it will produce that information.
This PIA and the ICE FRS PIA do provide notice to that public that ICE uses these
technologies.
Privacy Risk: There is a privacy risk that information will be retained within HORUS for
longer than is needed to accomplish the purpose for which the information was originally collected.
Mitigation: The risk is mitigated. By default, images within HORUS are considered
temporary records and are deleted after they have exhausted their business purpose. Any probe
photos, isolated imagery, or candidate returns used by HSI are subsequently saved in the relevant
hard case file for investigation or ICM.
The 20-year retention period for ICM and other case file records is consistent with the
retention schedules for other investigative records within DHS. By ensuring that information
pertaining to individuals who are encountered repeatedly over a span of time can be linked, this
retention period supports HSI’s effective enforcement of U.S. civil immigration authorities,
customs authorities, and federal criminal authorities. Closed cases can contain information that
may be relevant to a new or existing case and need to be readily searchable and accessible for at
least a period of time. The addition of probe photos and candidate returns to a case file will not
affect the existing retention processes in ICE systems. Probe photos and candidate returns will be
destroyed when the case file is destroyed.
In instances where an HSI program has created a gallery of unknown images within
HORUS, that program will submit a PTA to ICE Privacy before ingestion into RAVEn. ICE
Privacy will work with ICE Records and Data Management Unit to ensure each gallery has an
appropriate retention schedule that aligns with requirements established by the National Archives
and Records Administration (NARA). The standard, currently, is that HORUS will retain
unidentified images within the program’s gallery for 75 years after original collection, in
86

Discovery is the general process of a criminal defendant obtaining information possessed by a prosecutor
regarding the government’s criminal case against the defendant.
87
373 U.S. 83 (1963).
88
405 U.S. 150 (1972).

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accordance with a DHS-wide biometrics retention schedule, DAA-0563-2013-0001-0006.89 Every
program gallery, however, will be individually assessed during the PTA process.
Privacy Risk: There is a risk HSI will submit low quality images or probe photos that
would otherwise increase the likelihood of false case linkages from HORUS.
Mitigation: The risk is partially mitigated. ICE Privacy and HSI have developed training,
that all HSI agents and analysts are required to take prior to use of HORUS or any FRS, that helps
maximize image quality during their collections. The training discusses common failures within
facial recognition technologies and how to choose images most likely to improve accuracy within
an algorithm. Moreover, the primary purpose of HORUS is to assist HSI agents and analysts to
find and isolate the highest quality face images from standard media collections. HORUS’
functionality allows HSI users to quickly compare and identify isolated images of suspects and
victims from unprocessed media. This step will occur prior to an HSI user running a check against
a programmatic gallery. HSI users are also trained to vet all returns from an FRS, as per the policy
discussed in ICE’s FRS PIA.90 This vetting will extend to HORUS linkages. An HSI user will
compare existing evidence between the two cases to ensure that any image linkages are
corroborated by other information or evidence (e.g., same methods of criminality, same
geographical area of operation.)
Privacy Risk: There is a risk that HSI will use biographic information viewable in source
data to identify an individual.
Mitigation: This risk is partially mitigated. Original images or videos uploaded to HORUS
may contain incidental PII. That PII is cropped out of the viewable image when HORUS isolates
a face image for searching. The PII is only viewable in RAVEn if a user must access the original
file for context. HORUS has a splash screen disclaimer that must be accepted by users prior to
accessing HORUS. The disclaimer instructs the user that any data in addition to the image is not
verified, should be considered inaccurate, and should not be used to establish an individual’s
identity. Users are admonished to search the original case file of any image linked by HORUS and
are directed to run all images through an FRS prior to generating a lead.
Privacy Risk: There is a risk that HSI will use biographic or derogatory information
received from a linked case that is inaccurate.
Mitigation: This risk is partially mitigated. Data contained within ICE case files are
gathered for law enforcement and/or national security purposes. Law enforcement and national

89

See NATIONAL ARCHIVES AND RECORDS ADMINISTRATION, REQUEST FOR RECORDS DISPOSITION AUTHORITY,
RECORDS SCHEDULE NUMBER DAA-0563-2013-0001, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY, BIOMETRIC
WITH LIMITED BIOGRAPHICAL DATA (2013), available at https://www.archives.gov/files/recordsmgmt/rcs/schedules/departments/department-of-homeland-security/rg-0563/daa-0563-2013-0001_sf115.pdf.
90
Supra note 1.

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security personnel are trained to review all information they collect for accuracy, as errors may
detrimentally affect prosecutions and investigations. Similarly, if ICE personnel are alerted that
data within their case files or systems are inaccurate, they will work to correct the data as soon as
practicable. This increases the likelihood that the information within a case file or ICM has been
previously vetted for accuracy. Additionally, the HSI user will conduct his or her own research
and investigation to determine if the information returned by a linked case is accurate before
generating a lead.
Privacy Risk: There is a risk that media ingested into HORUS will be unverifiable.
Mitigation: The risk is partially mitigated. HSI Innovation Lab will not verify the
provenance of images prior to ingestion into RAVEn. HSI generally does not have the technical
capacity to analyze all media collected to determine whether it has been digitally manipulated (i.e.,
“deep fakes”). However, all ingestions must be approved by HSI supervisors prior to upload into
HORUS. HSI will use traditional investigative methods to vet the veracity of any media prior to
collection. The media collected by HSI will not be used to determine benefit eligibility, nor will it
be used for establishing probable cause in an investigation. Media collected by HSI will be
considered investigative leads until additional evidence either validates or refutes what was
collected.
Privacy Risk: There is a risk HSI users may inappropriately access images or use
information within HORUS for purposes outside the scope of this Appendix.
Mitigation: The risk is mitigated. User roles and access controls are incorporated into
RAVEn at the record level, so that only users with a need to know and pre-approval can access the
tool or programmatic galleries. Due to technical constraints in the HORUS algorithm, an image or
video in one gallery cannot be shared with another gallery internally. Any image would have to be
submitted individually to each program’s gallery. At each submission, the HSI supervisor of that
program would have to verify that the data upload was for a legitimate mission need. Any HSI
personnel involved in the collection, processing, vetting, or sharing of face images are required to
undergo training on the appropriate uses of data collected by HSI and received from partners.
Personnel will receive access only after satisfactory completion of the training and with approval
from an HSI supervisor. Anyone who is found to have used HORUS in an unauthorized manner
will be disciplined in accordance with ICE policy and/or federal law.

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Name: RAVEN GO
Purpose and Use:
RAVEn GO is a mobile application which serves as a portable version of the RAVEn
system. RAVEn GO is available for download by authorized users (i.e., Homeland Security
Investigations (HSI) Special Agents, Criminal Analysts, and a limited number of other HSI
employees) on ICE phones through a comprehensive mobility solution that allows ICE users to
securely access ICE information via their ICE mobile device.
RAVEn GO provides search functions, data feeds, and real-time secured message and data
exchange. At the most basic level, RAVEn GO operates as a remote access point to RAVEn. HSI
agents and analysts can:
•

Perform simple, quick searches or more advanced, filter-based searches on RAVEn
datasets for which they have been granted access;

•

Set up automatic alerts that occur when new data matching criteria enters the RAVEn
system;

•

Send secure text messages and photos to other members in the field for real-time analysis
(he application stamps the transmissions with date, time, and geocode/geolocation);

•

Record and save relevant details, add photos, and auto-scan (capture textual data from
images) driver’s licenses, passports, and visas with reports and Encounter Cards (EC); and

•

Submit reports and ECs to the RAVEn platform for further analysis.

RAVEn GO allows HSI agents to directly input data taken from the field in the form of an
EC. In the context of HSI criminal investigations, HSI agents use Field Interview Cards (FIC) (ICE
Form 73-011) to document field interviews. The FIC is a form on which agents may record
information about investigative subjects, witnesses, and other third parties. The EC is RAVEn’s
version of the FIC that also allows agents to note interactions and observations that are not tied to
interviews (e.g., encountered vehicles, phones, addresses).
RAVEn GO provides a fillable form (the EC) on the ICE phone and securely transmits the
information collected during field interviews into the RAVEn platform. This electronic collection
provides a more secure means to collect and transmit Sensitive PII and allows for the direct
electronic ingest of data into the RAVEn platform. This minimizes the opportunity for data entry
errors and inconsistencies between the data collected on the original instrument (the EC) and the
data that ultimately resides in RAVEn.
The RAVEn GO EC function expedites the availability of this information to other HSI agents
with appropriate access permissions who may encounter the same individuals and therefore have
a need to know the details of a previous HSI interview. Using a mobile application does not change

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the collection of information by HSI agents; it simply changes the way the information is
transmitted to RAVEn for analysis and use by other HSI personnel.
Access to RAVEN RAVEn GO is restricted to authorized HSI special agents, criminal
analysts, and a limited number of other HSI employees/full-time task force officers. All RAVEn
GO users agree to a Rules of Behavior (ROB) statement at every login. Audit logs are maintained
for all actions taken within the RAVEn GO application. Any user found to have violated the ROB
may have his or her access revoked and is subject to disciplinary action.
Information Collected, Retained, and Disseminated:
RAVEn GO allows users to access any datasets available to them through RAVEn. This
includes all datasets discussed in Section 2.1 of this PIA, as well as datasets discussed in Appendix
A. RAVEn GO does not connect to any systems other than the RAVEn platform and does not
share data beyond what is available within RAVEn.
The following data may be entered on the EC, when available and pertinent:
•

Agent/Officer name and identifier;

•

Criteria for interview and organizational affiliation indications;

•

Date and time;

•

Field Interview Location;

•

Citizenship;

•

Family information, including citizenship;

•

Contact information;

•

Vehicle information;

•

Miscellaneous information and additional notes;

•

Photo identification number;

•

Photographs;

•

Descriptions of scars, marks, and tattoos;

•

Social Security number;

•

A-Number; and

•

TECS Case Number.

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Individuals Impacted:
RAVEn GO can perform simple searches on any dataset ingested into the RAVEn platform
and can be used for any HSI statutory mission. Therefore, any individual whose record is in
RAVEn may be impacted by the tool. Most commonly, RAVEn GO will be used when HSI agents
or analysts encounter individuals during field work for their investigations.
Additional Privacy Risks and Mitigations:
Privacy Risk: There is a risk data will inadvertently be retained on the ICE mobile device.
Mitigation: This risk is mitigated. The deployment of RAVEn GO is managed by HSI’s
instance of a Mobile Device Manager (MDM). The MDM provides HSI with the ability to control
the operations undertaken by RAVEn GO at a granular level, including RAVEn GO’s ability to
write data to the ICE mobile device. This prevents RAVEn GO data from being captured or stored
on the ICE mobile device unless it is an explicit functionality created by the HSI Innovation Lab.
The MDM additionally provides a local encrypted store so any data that is stored locally,
intentionally or otherwise, will not exist in plain text. The MDM provides HSI the ability to
manage how RAVEn GO interacts with ICE mobile devices and allows HSI to mitigate the risk of
RAVEn GO data being inadvertently retained on the ICE mobile device.
Privacy Risk: There is a risk that the mobile application will allow unauthorized users
more opportunities to access the RAVEn platform via ICE phones.
Mitigation: This risk is mitigated. All ICE phones are encrypted and require either face,
fingerprint, or passcode authentication to access the contents of the phone. ICE utilizes certificate
technology to grant authorized users secure access to restricted information. All methods and
endpoints for interacting with RAVEn GO are protected by the same authentication and
authorization mechanisms as RAVEn. As a result, a user’s access privileges via RAVEn GO are
the same as the platform. Access privileges to data stored in RAVEn are identical to a user’s access
privileges to that same data in a RAVEn source system. Since RAVEn GO is protected by the
same authentication and authorization mechanisms as RAVEn, ICE mobile devices, or any other
device, do not present additional risk of unauthorized access.
Privacy Risk: There is a risk RAVEn GO may collect information, such as metadata or
geolocation information, while not in active use.
Mitigation: This risk is mitigated. RAVEn GO is not able to run any background processes
which would collect information when RAVEn GO is not running on the ICE mobile device. Any
risk to this type of information collection by RAVEn GO is mitigated by HSI’s deployment of
MDM. RAVEn GO’s MDM allows HSI to control how RAVEn GO can run, including what
information it can collect, even after the deployment of RAVEn GO onto a device. The RAVEn

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GO application is partitioned off from any other mobile functionalities or applications on the phone
through the MDM.
Privacy Risk: There is a risk information entered into the EC will not be vetted for
accuracy prior to its use in RAVEn searches and reports.
Mitigation: This risk is partially mitigated. All information entered into the EC is based
on information provided by the subject of the interview, documents provided during the interview,
and/or observations made by trained HSI agents. The ability to capture and auto-scan documents
minimizes the risk of data entry errors that are present in traditional forms of data capture
associated with the interview process. The entering agent’s name and contact information is linked
to each EC so any discrepancies that may be later identified can be addressed with the agent and
corrected.
Privacy Risk: There is a risk that RAVEn GO users will be able to access information for
which they do not have permission.
Mitigation: This risk is mitigated. For data sets routinely ingested into RAVEn, the HSI
Innovation Lab has established technical rules to ensure that the user privileges of the source
system carry forward and apply to that user in RAVEn, no matter what tool the user accesses.
Permissions to ad hoc data uploads must be manually assigned on each upload. As a result, a user’s
access privileges to the data stored in RAVEn are identical to their access privileges to that same
data in the source system. This prevents RAVEn GO from being used, intentionally or
unintentionally, to undermine or defeat the role-based access controls established by the source
system.

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Name:
Mobile Device Analytics (MDA) and Email Analytics (EA)
Purpose and Use:
MDA is an analytical tool within the RAVEn environment that can search and analyze data
extracted from mobile devices. Email Analytics is a similar analytical tool that is used on data
seized from email accounts and servers. HSI has identified cellular telephones and email
communications to be an important means to support criminal activity. HSI determined there is a
high likelihood that evidence exists on cellular telephones, other mobile devices (hereinafter
collectively referred to as “mobile device(s),”) and email accounts identified in connection with
criminal investigations.
During operations, HSI will either gain consent from an individual or obtain subpoenas,
search warrants, or court orders to extract data from mobile devices or email accounts linked to
targets of criminal investigations. For MDA, through separate and additional processes, HSI will
make mobile device data accessible to agents and analysts for analysis.91 For EA, Each email
extraction will be manually loaded by HSI personnel after appropriate authority has been granted
(e.g., search warrant). When investigative data is manually imported into RAVEn. An HSI
supervisor will review the data to ensure the data’s upload is appropriate and adheres to ICE policy.
MDA and EA are simply analytical tools and cannot open, access, or “hack” devices or email
accounts. For security purposes, the mobile device will not be connected to the internet.
The MDA and EA applications will have the capabilities to sort, filter, correlate, and
discover relationships and pertinent evidence lawfully obtained from mobile devices and/or email
accounts. The interface will enable members of investigative teams to organize and intuitively
visualize lawfully collected information and facilitate collaboration and communication among
investigators. The implemented advanced analytics strategies will rapidly extract patterns and
illuminate connections within the collected information.
As an application within RAVEn, MDA and EA will possess the same technical,
administrative, and physical safeguards as other tools within the RAVEn environment. Data
retention and user access is controlled at the record level, and as an ad hoc upload, all data ingested
by RAVEn for MDA and EA is assigned a relevant case number that is associated with an ongoing
investigation. HSI supervisors approve the data loaded into RAVEn for MDA and EA. RAVEn
has auditing and logging functionalities that track the use of the MDA and EA tools and associated
data.
The output from MDA and EA will be an organized report that captures the most pertinent
91

For more information on ICE processes of access and extraction of mobile devices see DHS/ICE/PIA-042
Forensic Analysis of Electronic Media, available at www.dhs.gov/privacy.

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evidence discovered via the application. The format of the reports will enable use in other HSI law
enforcement systems, principally the Investigative Case Management system (ICM).92
Investigators and analysts can also use MDA or EA to isolate and consolidate information relevant
to an investigation for later extraction and use within the RAVEn environment. For example, links
of email addresses identified by MDA/EA could be migrated to the RAVEn CORE93 tool to create
a visualization or to be checked against ICE holdings in ICM.
Information Collected, Retained, and Disseminated:
The MDA and EA applications will store data found on mobile devices or within email
accounts obtained via court orders, search warrants, subpoenas, or consensual searches from
individuals, which includes:
•

Biographic information (e.g., names);

•

Contact information (e.g., phone numbers, email addresses, physical addresses);

•

Social media information (e.g., accounts, usernames, public posts);

•

Text/chat messages;

•

Financial accounts and transactions;

•

Browser history;

•

Emails, including email addresses and email content;

•

Information on calendars and other note applications on a device or linked to an email
account;

•

IP addresses;

•

Geolocation information (such as addresses and/or geotags associated with data in emails
or on the mobile device);

•

Images; and

•

Telecommunications information (e.g., call logs, cell site information).

Individuals Impacted:
The MDA and EA tools analyze the PII of individuals whose information may be contained
within the mobile devices or email accounts seized by HSI personnel.

92
93

See DHS/ICE/PIA-045 Investigative Case Management System (ICM), available at www.dhs.gov/privacy.
For more information on RAVEn CORE See Appendix B of this PIA.

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Additional Privacy Risks and Mitigations:
Privacy Risk: There is a risk that MDA/EA collects information that is irrelevant to an
investigation. This includes a risk that the PII of individuals unassociated with an investigation
will be retained by ICE.
Mitigation: This risk is partially mitigated. There is a risk of overcollection due to the fact
that the entire contents of a mobile device will be uploaded into MDA and the entire contents of
an email account will be uploaded to EA. The sheer volume of data within a mobile device or
email account, however, makes it impractical to view the data outside of analytical processes.
MDA and EA only conduct focused searches using predetermined queries. Only data that is
directly tied to the search is then displayed. After the query, the agent or analyst may determine
which information is relevant and may remove information deemed out of scope. Any data
collected outside the scope of the MDA or EA application will not be used or introduced as
evidence in an investigation.
Privacy Risk: There is a risk that data uploaded to MDA or EA may have been acquired
by means other than via legal processes, such as a subpoena or search warrant.
Mitigation: This risk is mitigated. MDA and EA are purely analytical tools and exist as
only a part of a forensic or investigative analysis process that has rigorous protections to ensure
the integrity of data and chain of custody for evidence. The process of opening or accessing the
contents of a mobile device occurs earlier in the chain of custody of evidence. At that time in the
process, HSI verifies that the mobile device was obtained through consent or legal processes.
Accessing the contents of the phone is accomplished outside of HSI Innovation Lab by digital
forensic examiners through a separate extraction device. HSI agents or analysts seeking data from
a mobile device must gain supervisor approval prior to forensic examiners granting access.
Supervisors will ensure that the chain of custody was maintained and HSI’s possession of the
mobile device is lawful. Moreover, MDA logs all devices that are connected to the application,
and tags the records extracted from the mobile device with a HashID. That ID must be associated
with a relevant case or investigation, thereby precluding any improper uploads to MDA.
Each email extraction will be manually loaded by HSI personnel after appropriate authority
has been granted (e.g., search warrant). When investigative data is manually imported into
RAVEn, HSI agents are required by policy to electronically share this data with their supervisors
for review. The HSI supervisor will review the data to ensure that it was acquired via appropriate
processes while it remains in RAVEn’s upload queue. Data will only be uploaded from the queue
if it is approved. These uploads are logged within the RAVEn system. The logs of devices
connected to MDA and data uploaded to EA are routinely audited by HSI Innovation Lab
personnel. If HSI finds that an agent or analyst has uploaded data inappropriately to MDA or EA,
that information will be deleted.

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Privacy Risk: There is a risk that the MDA or EA tool will be used for purposes beyond
what is outlined in this PIA. This risk is heightened due to the large amounts of data present in
mobile devices and email accounts.
Mitigation: The risk is partially mitigated. HSI’s use of MDA and EA are governed by
requirements specified in the ICE Computer Forensics Handbook and by federal laws, regulations,
and policies that govern the acquisition, handling, and preservation of electronic evidence,
including personally identifiable information. MDA and EA have been developed to log all user
access and use of data. MDA and EA create a HashID of ingests at the record level that notes what
case the data is associated with. HSI Innovation Lab is developing security measures to ensure that
only individuals associated with a relevant case and with a need to know the information can view
specific records within MDA or EA. Until that time, MDA and EA user access is restricted to those
users with a need to use the tool.
Further, all user search terms and queries are automatically logged by RAVEn within the
MDA and EA applications. HSI supervisors will conduct routine audits on the system to ensure
proper use. Any user that is found to be using MDA or EA inappropriately will have his or her
access revoked and may face disciplinary action. Finally, if data derived from MDA or EA is used
in a law enforcement action, such as an arrest or search, then that data must be presented to a court,
where ICE must explain how the information was obtained. If a court determines that evidence
was acquired inappropriately, it may deny HSI’s request for a warrant or subpoena. Therefore, all
data analyzed by MDA and EA will only be used for criminal investigations and appropriate law
enforcement purposes.
Privacy Risk: There is a risk that data will be retained within the MDA or EA tool longer
than is necessary for an investigation.
Mitigation: The risk is mitigated. Data that HSI extracts for use in MDA or EA will reside
in the same data repository as all data within RAVEn. It will be similarly tagged at the record level
with the relevant case number and retention schedule. MDA data extracts will be both
automatically and manually audited with the rest of the RAVEn data environment to ensure data
is deleted in accordance with ICE policies and retention schedules.