AI Firms Blocking Government Surveillance

Updated: 2025.10.07 14D ago 3 sources
Anthropic reportedly refused federal contractors’ requests to use Claude for domestic surveillance and cites a policy that bans such use. The move limits how FBI, Secret Service, and ICE can deploy frontier models even as Anthropic maintains other federal work. It signals AI vendors asserting ethical vetoes over public‑sector applications. — Private usage policies are becoming de facto law for surveillance tech, shifting power from agencies to vendors and reshaping civil‑liberties and procurement debates.

Sources

OpenAI Bans Suspected China-Linked Accounts For Seeking Surveillance Proposals
BeauHD 2025.10.07 82% relevant
Like Anthropic’s refusal to support domestic surveillance, OpenAI’s threat report says it banned accounts tied to Chinese entities that asked ChatGPT to design social‑media 'listening' tools, indicating model providers are enforcing anti‑surveillance norms by cutting access.
Anthropic Refuses Federal Agencies From Using Claude for Surveillance Tasks
msmash 2025.09.17 100% relevant
Anthropic declined surveillance requests and pointed to its policy prohibiting domestic surveillance, per Semafor’s reporting.
Anthropic Denies Federal Agencies Use of Claude for Surveillance Tasks
msmash 2025.09.17 95% relevant
The report says Anthropic declined requests from federal law‑enforcement contractors to use Claude for surveillance and enforces a no‑domestic‑surveillance policy, limiting FBI, Secret Service, and ICE—exactly the dynamic of vendors asserting ethical vetoes over public‑sector applications.
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