US Immigration and Customs Enforcement has declined to adopt a watchdog recommendation for technology that would automatically activate agents’ body cameras when a weapon is drawn, according to a Government Accountability Office report released on October 14, 2026. The Department of Homeland Security accepted six other recommendations in the same report but rejected this one.
The GAO report, covered by Reuters, reviewed body-camera programmes at both ICE and Customs and Border Protection. It said neither agency had updated its programme plans since 2022 and 2024 respectively, and that personnel at six of the 10 locations reviewed were unsure when they were required to turn cameras on.
Customs and Border Protection already uses technology that activates cameras automatically when officers draw firearms or switch on emergency lights, according to the GAO. ICE does not, and the watchdog said additional controls were needed to make sure cameras are activated when agency policy requires it.
Why DHS said no
The Department of Homeland Security told the GAO that automatic activation carried privacy and operational risks, according to Reuters. For ICE, it cited the risk of inadvertent or false activations during routine movement, the possible recording of informants and victims, and filming of bystanders engaged in First Amendment activities.
The GAO disagreed that those risks settled the question. “We maintain that additional controls, such as automated camera activation, would provide greater assurance that body-worn cameras meet ICE’s desired results for transparency, accountability, and public trust,” the watchdog said in the report, according to Reuters.
ICE policy already requires officers to record arrests, searches, brief detentions and other activities, according to the National Immigration Forum’s summary of the report. The problem identified by the GAO was not the absence of a rule, but uncertainty about when it applied and a lack of controls to ensure recording happened.
Scrutiny over missing footage
The recommendation comes amid scrutiny of enforcement tactics and missing body-camera footage after fatal shootings, according to Reuters. The GAO report covered February 2025 to September 2026, a period that included fatal incidents in Minneapolis and other cases that raised questions about officers’ accountability.
DHS said ICE had acquired enough cameras to equip all officers and agents nationwide, with training ongoing, according to the National Immigration Forum. It accepted the report’s six other recommendations, which cover programme management and planning.
The debate is not over. The ranking member of the House Homeland Security Committee called ICE’s rejection unacceptable and said he planned to introduce legislation requiring automatic activation, according to the Forum’s summary. Until Congress acts or the agency changes course, the gap between CBP’s automatic system and ICE’s manual approach will remain a focus for oversight.
