Palantir, a controversial US tech firm founded by billionaire Peter Thiel, has secured its first contract with a UK police force, Leicestershire Police, to provide a ‘police intelligence and investigation platform,’ raising ongoing concerns about data privacy.
The contract, worth £818,750, is under the East Midlands Special Operations Unit (EMSOU), a joint organised crime and counter-terrorism outfit, which includes multiple police forces in the region.
Palantir scoops contract with Leicestershire Police
Palantir is a controversial choice, as some community leaders, campaign groups and members of Parliament have raised concerns about giving the company access to public data. Aasiya Bora, a former Green party police and crime commissioner candidate, expressed serious concerns: “The idea that Palantir is now extending their reach into police data has to concern us. How will the data be used? Who will keep them accountable?”
In an email sent to the Leicester Gazette, a Palantir spokesperson confirmed: “At its core, this contract will involve the same type of software that was used for the Covid-19 vaccine rollout and that is currently being used to help reduce NHS waiting lists, keep Royal Navy ships at sea for longer and resettle Ukrainian refugees in the UK.”
Palantir also stated that they are “proud that our software will be used to support Leicestershire Police in their critical work” and “We are confident that, just as in those cases, the software we provide can help deliver positive outcomes for the community.”
It is not known whether the police and crime commissioner Rupert Matthews was aware of the contract before it was awarded, but Westcotes councillor Sarah Russell, vice-chair of the police and crime panel, said, “This one has not come before the panel to my knowledge”.
A EMSOU spokesperson said: “We have followed appropriate procurement processes, to secure services to support the delivery of operational policing.”
What you need to know about Palantir and Peter Thiel
Founded in 2003 by billionaire Peter Thiel, Palantir has primarily served US military, security, and intelligence agencies, and has been involved with the UK Ministry of Defence since at least 2018.
Thiel has donated millions of dollars to Donald Trump and Republican candidates in the United States, and he describes himself as a libertarian. He was reported in June as saying “If you hold a gun to my head I’ll vote for Trump,” though he is not officially backing his campaign.
The software Palantir sells helps organisations analyse large amounts of data. It gathers information from different sources and lets customers search through it. Palantir has also developed artificial intelligence tools that can automatically identify buildings, vehicles, and people in video footage.
Palantir’s tech is already in use in US police forces and has been accused of creating ‘racist’ feedback loops. According to experts, the technology has led to people in already over-policed neighbourhoods becoming targets for police abuse. Palantir has previously refused to comment on software it has provided to US police forces. There is no indication that this is the same tech in use at Leicestershire Police.
The company recently faced criticism over a multi-million pound NHS deal to join patient data between different NHS trusts, and was awarded several contracts during the pandemic without tender. Palantir’s lack of track record in healthcare and murky links to US and UK spy agencies made it unfit to take on the job, according to campaigners. Palantir maintains that it has never had access to any identifiable medical records.
In the first year of the pandemic, former Leicester East MP Claudia Webbe said, “Monopolies including Deloitte, KPMG, Serco, Sodexo, Mitie, Boots even US mining group Palantir all benefitted from government contracts to manage the pandemic; yet they’ve failed. Whilst, public services are weakened, underfunded and vulnerable and our NHS is traded to the highest bidder.”
More recently, leaked emails revealed that Palantir hired PR firm Topham Guerin to pay influencers to attack the Good Law Project, a not-for-profit campaign organisation, on social media. Good Law Project had been raising concerns about a £330mn deal between Palantir and the government to process millions of NHS patient records. Jo Maugham, director at the Good Law Project, said “Palantir, in covertly paying influencers to smear us, ought to have disbarred itself from providing police intelligence services. If it is capable of dishonestly smearing its critics, why is it not capable of manufacturing intelligence about them?”
Article originally published in the Leicester Gazette, republished with permission using CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 licence.
