EFF, unions sue Trump admin. over alleged mass social media surveillance of legal residents

Digital rights group Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) filed a lawsuit Thursday against the Trump administration over the government’s alleged social media surveillance of people living in the United States legally.

The lawsuit claims the government is using AI and other methods to look at the social media posts of nearly every single noncitizen in the U.S. legally and on valid visas, as well as many people who have obtained permanent resident status. The US government, according to the complaint, is looking for posts that express views that the current government dislikes.

The lawsuit states that the list of banned posts includes those that criticize American culture and the US government; that express anti-Semitic/pro-Palestinian support, including support for university protests; Those who justify or shed light on the murder of Charlie Kirk; or criticize the Trump administration or its actions.

The EFF also alleged that the government is threatening non-citizens with punishment, including revoking their visas in immigration detention.

The lawsuit points to posts on the State Department’s X account. this Includes currently pinned threads Documenting visa revocation by department for comments about Charlie Kirk.

The suit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York on behalf of the Auto Union, the Teachers Union and the Communications Workers Union.

The EFF’s lawsuit claims that these disciplinary actions, as well as the “viewpoint-based” surveillance itself, are an unlawful violation of the union members’ free speech rights.

D Full case can be found here.