For Immediate Release
S.T.O.P. Condemns Renewal of Rikers AI Phone Surveillance Contract
(New York, NY, 5/13/2026) - Today, the Surveillance Technology Oversight Project (S.T.O.P.), a New York-based privacy and civil rights group, condemns the Mamdani administration’s plan to renew a multimillion-dollar, five-year contract with Securus Technologies on Rikers Island starting July 1. Securus uses artificial intelligence to monitor inmates’ phone calls, analyzing conversations with automated voice recognition technology and automated content analysis. The planned contract renewal comes after Brooklyn Defender Services (BDS) submitted a public comment in April calling on the New York City Department of Corrections to cancel the proposal, warning Securus expands surveillance beyond jail walls to target the friends and family of incarcerated New Yorkers. BDS also warned Securus undermines New York City sanctuary laws because of its integration with AI data analytics firm Palantir, which actively partners with ICE.
SEE: The City - City To Renew Rikers Phone Deal Amid AI Surveillance Concerns
https://www.thecity.nyc/2026/05/12/rikers-island-securus-ai-ice-surveillance/
Brooklyn Defender Services - BDS Public Comment in Opposition to Proposed Contract Award to Securus Technologies
https://bds.org/latest/bds-public-comment-in-opposition-to-proposed-contract-award-to-securus-technologies
“The City should be shuttering Rikers, not funneling millions toward another half decade of its AI phone surveillance,” said Surveillance Technology Oversight Project Executive Director Michelle Dahl. “Securus isn’t just a threat to incarcerated New Yorkers, but to their friends, family, and communities. It also undermines the constitutional rights of New Yorkers being held pretrial who haven’t even been convicted of a crime. This sort of technology automates racial profiling and endangers immigrant communities, flagging voices, words, and phrases based solely on algorithmic bias and leaving that data vulnerable to ICE.”
SEE: PIX11 - Mamdani working to close Rikers Island Jail
https://pix11.com/video/mamdani-working-to-close-rikers-island-jail/11678384/
S.T.O.P. previously released Listening Beyond the Bars, a research report detailing the abuses of artificial intelligence and audio surveillance in New York prisons. In 2022, S.T.O.P. published an opinion piece condemning the DOC’s plan to digitize all mail entering Rikers Island and other city jails.
SEE: Report – Listening Beyond the Bars: New York’s AI Surveillance of Prisoners and Their Loved Ones
https://www.stopspying.org/listening-beyond-the-bars
City Limits - Opinion: NYC Jails Criminalize Mail Correspondence, Just In Time For the Holidays
https://citylimits.org/2022/12/15/opinion-nyc-jails-criminalize-mail-correspondence-just-in-time-for-the-holidays/
The Surveillance Technology Oversight Project is a non-profit advocacy organization and legal services provider. S.T.O.P. litigates and advocates for privacy, fighting excessive local and state-level surveillance. Our work highlights the discriminatory impact of surveillance on Muslim Americans, immigrants, and communities of color.
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