A federal contract awarded on June 5 lets Immigration and Customs Enforcement purchase a subscription to immigrant tax‑identifier data from data‑broker Thundercut Technology. The deal totals $9.97 million and is labeled “ITIN data subscription and analytics for HSI agents in fraud investigations.” Senators argue the purchase sidesteps a court order that barred ICE from obtaining the same information directly from the IRS.

ITINs, Individual Taxpayer Identification Numbers, are issued by the IRS to undocumented filers who cannot obtain Social Security numbers. Undocumented workers collectively contribute tens of billions in taxes, making the identifiers valuable for fraud probes. Prior attempts to share IRS records with ICE were halted by two judges in late 2023, citing unlawful practices and misidentification risks for the government.

Critics say the move reflects a broader “data‑broker loophole” that ICE and Customs and Border Protection have exploited, buying phone‑location, utility and now tax data without court warrants. Thundercut Technology, a known reseller of surveillance tools, declined comment. The contract illustrates how federal agencies continues to bypass legal constraints by purchasing bulk datasets from private vendors.