Secret Service, ICE carried out illegal stingray surveillance, government watchdog says

U.S. federal agencies failed to secure required court orders to conduct phone tracking surveillance, according to a recently redacted memorandum from a government watchdog. 

The report, written by the Office of the Inspector General (OIG) and dated February 23, provided details of an audit of the use of cell-site simulators (CSS) — a law enforcement tool that mimics cellular towers to trick nearby devices into connecting with them. These instruments, which are also known as stingrays or IMSI-catchers, allow …

audit cell-site simulators cellular court css devices enforcement february federal federal agencies general government ice inspector inspector general law law enforcement office oig phone report secret secret service service stingray surveillance tool tracking watchdog