Congressional Democrats Question Palantir Over Potential Privacy Infractions
Palantir’s reported role in helping the IRS build a database of sensitive tax information likely violates the Privacy Act and tax privacy laws, congressional Democrats said in a letter to CEO Alex Karp on Tuesday.
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Sens. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., and Ed Markey, D-Mass., joined Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., and several others in a letter about reports that the company is “helping the IRS to build a government-wide, searchable, ‘mega-database,’ connecting sensitive tax and other data the government holds about American citizens.”
Palantir issued a statement Tuesday denying the claims: "Palantir is not building a master database. Palantir is neither conducting nor enabling mass surveillance of American citizens. No amount of parroting of this false accusation will make it true."
The letter cites protections under the Privacy Act and Sections 6103 and 7213A of the tax code.
“The unprecedented possibility of a searchable, ‘mega-database’ of tax returns and other data that will potentially be shared with or accessed by other federal agencies is a surveillance nightmare that raises a host of legal concerns, not least that it will make it significantly easier for Donald Trump’s Administration to spy on and target his growing list of enemies and other Americans,” they wrote.