NY Officials Respond to ISIS Threat With Counterterrorism App

The second coming of “See Something, Say Something,” Homeland Security’s controversial post-9/11 program, has arrived on the streets of New York in the form of a new government-controlled app called “See Something, Send Something.”

The app is New York Governor Andrew Cuomo’s response to ISIS’ recent attacks on Paris — in which more than 100 civilians were murdered — and the terror group’s subsequent threats to stage similar attacks in the U.S.

“These new efforts are essential pieces in our fight against terrorism,” Governor Cuomo said Monday.

A PSA for the “See Something, Send Something” program (embedded above) will be aired at DMV offices and “service areas along state highways,” according to the governor’s office.

To participate in the program, New Yorkers need only download the See Send app from the Apple or Android store; snap a photo of anything they determine to be suspicious; add a quick note; and press “Send.”

Photos and notes will be instantly delivered to the New York State Intelligence Center, where agents will hand-forward it to “the appropriate law enforcement agency,“ the governor’s office says.

(For those unaware: The New York State Intelligence Center is our state’s hub in a national network of ”fusion centers,” where “federal, state and local agencies come together to analyze and share information related to terrorism and other crimes.”)

Similar apps are already available in Colorado, Louisiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Virginia, according to Cuomo.

For longtime critics of the usefulness — and legality — of Homeland Security’s original program, this knee-jerk response to ISIS’ recent threats may, too, raise some concern.

A September 2013 American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) report on “See Something, Say Something” found that the program resulted in “violations of our privacy, racial and religious profiling, and interference with constitutionally-protected activities.”

From the ACLU report:

A Senate subcommittee reviewed a year of similar intelligence reporting from state and local authorities identified and “dozens of problematic or useless” reports “potentially violating civil liberties protections.” A report, co-authored by Los Angeles Police Department Deputy Chief Michael Downing, found that SARs have “flooded fusion centers, law enforcement, and other security entities with white noise.” Also, as the ACLU notes in a report released this week on post-9/11 FBI abuses, SARs generated from state and local police and public tips — many reflecting religious, racial, ethnic, and political bias — end up in federal counterterrorism databases.

A spokesman for the New York State Police said via email that this new, post-ISIS flood of photo intelligence into New York’s fusion center will be handled according to existing federal guidelines [PDF].

We’ve reached out to ACLU experts for thoughts on the program’s expansion. Check back for updates.