Petition: Almost 1,000 employees demand that Google cut ties with ICE

In recent weeks, the sometimes violent actions of the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) have caused horror around the world. Now Google employees are calling on their employer to end business relationships with these authorities.

1,000 Googlers sign petition

According to information on the relevant website, 985 Google employees (“Googlers”) have already signed a corresponding petition entitled “Occupational safety and transparency in ICE contracts”. As a first step, Google is required to disclose all contracts with the US authorities.

All partnerships should then be terminated. This is particularly about the search engine company’s cloud and AI technology, which would be used for Palantir’s monitoring software used by ICE.

Criticism of removal of ICE block app

In addition, Googlers criticize the fact that the company has thrown “the most effective ICE tracking app” out of the Play Store. Like Apple, Google also blocked apps for ICE observation in the fall of 2025 – according to critics, on instructions from the US Department of Justice.

In this case, an investigation and a lawsuit against the ministry have been announced.

This is not the first time that cooperation with US authorities has been in the sights of critical Google employees. In 2019, almost 1,500 Googlers signed a petition to suspend the company’s cooperation with the CBP until it stops possible violations.

Google wants protection from ICE

But now it’s about more. Because Google employees also demand that the company protect them from ICE operations. The agency’s agents have already been out and about in Google buildings.

Google has not yet commented on the petition. The company only told Wired that the technologies available – i.e. cloud and AI – were open to all customers for use.

Google employees apparently see it differently. The petition states: “As employees of conscience, we demand that our leaders end the relapse into contracting with governments that commit violence against civilians.”

Demands on other tech companies

Things are also simmering in other tech companies in the USA. A petition in which employees of several companies such as Meta and Amazon called for an end to ICE operations in US cities is said to have collected over 1,000 signatures.