(DailyChive.com) – Trump’s 2025 privacy rollbacks have unleashed a surveillance state that targets immigrants and foreigners while giving data brokers free rein to sell Americans’ most sensitive personal information without consent.
Key Takeaways
- The Trump administration revoked CFPB rules that would have prevented data brokers from selling consumers’ personal information without consent
- The FTC’s updates to children’s online privacy protections (COPPA) were frozen by Trump’s January 2025 “Regulatory Freeze” executive order
- Government agencies are now deploying AI-powered surveillance tools with private companies like Palantir and Anduril providing the technology
- States including Oregon, California, Texas, and Vermont have passed their own laws to regulate data brokers in response to federal inaction
- Privacy advocates warn that Americans’ sensitive data is now vulnerable to exploitation with minimal federal oversight
Biden-Era Privacy Protections Dismantled
The Biden administration’s attempts to protect Americans’ personal data have been systematically dismantled in the first months of Trump’s return to office. Most significantly, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has abandoned plans to block data brokers from selling consumers’ personal information without consent. This decision effectively eliminates federal oversight of data brokers, allowing the unrestricted sale of Americans’ most sensitive details, including location data, financial records, and health information.
“The Trump administration has signaled it intends to ignore how data brokers harm Americans by selling their personal information without their knowledge or consent,” said a privacy advocate familiar with the matter. The administration’s stance represents a complete reversal from the previous administration’s efforts to establish guardrails for the largely unregulated data broker industry.
Children’s Privacy Protections Frozen
In addition to the CFPB rollback, the Federal Trade Commission’s updates to the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) have been placed in regulatory limbo. These rules, which would have mandated stricter parental consent requirements for data sharing and limited how long companies could retain children’s data, were finalized under the Biden administration but never published in the Federal Register. Trump’s January 2025 “Regulatory Freeze” executive order halted their implementation.
The FTC, now under new leadership, has indicated it will “review” these protections, but industry observers note that this likely signals their eventual abandonment. Meanwhile, children’s data remains vulnerable to exploitation by tech companies and data brokers with minimal federal oversight or consequences.
The Rise of the Surveillance State
While rolling back privacy protections for Americans, the Trump administration has simultaneously expanded government surveillance capabilities. Federal agencies are now deploying sophisticated AI tools for warrantless scanning of social media, biometric analysis, license plate tracking, and geolocation surveillance. These systems primarily target immigrants, foreign visitors, and international students, creating what critics describe as a “mass techno-surveillance state.”
Private companies like Palantir and Anduril are providing much of this technology, raising concerns about the growing public-private surveillance partnership. The administration defends these measures as necessary for national security, but civil liberties groups warn that such capabilities could easily be turned against American citizens.
“How the US is turning into a mass techno-surveillance state,” warns a recent headline from El Pais, highlighting how the administration’s policies are drawing international concern about America’s commitment to privacy rights.
States Step Up Where Federal Government Retreats
In response to federal inaction, several states have implemented their own data privacy regulations. Oregon, California, Texas, and Vermont have passed laws requiring data broker registration and compliance oversight. In February 2025, California fined National Public Data for violating broker registration laws, demonstrating that states are willing to enforce these protections even as the federal government abandons them.
This patchwork approach creates significant compliance challenges for businesses operating across state lines. Companies must now navigate a complex web of state regulations while federal authorities stand down on privacy enforcement. The result is a fragmented regulatory landscape where citizens’ privacy protections depend entirely on where they live.
“The Electronic Privacy Information Center argues the policies ‘give a free pass to companies to invade our privacy and put us in harm’s way,'” according to reporting from Politico’s Weekly Cybersecurity newsletter.
Foreign Data Focus While Ignoring Domestic Privacy
In a telling shift of priorities, the FTC under Trump is focusing on restricting data flows to “foreign adversaries” under the Protecting Americans’ Data from Foreign Adversaries Act (PADFA) and Executive Order 14117. Meanwhile, domestic data brokers face minimal federal scrutiny, creating a double standard where foreign access to data is restricted while American companies can freely collect and sell the same information.
This approach aligns with the administration’s broader “America First” policy framework but leaves Americans vulnerable to privacy violations from domestic companies. Privacy advocates argue that this selective enforcement fails to address the fundamental issue: Americans’ personal data is being collected, sold, and exploited with minimal oversight regardless of whether the buyer is foreign or domestic.
The Path Forward
As the administration continues to roll back privacy protections while expanding surveillance capabilities, the debate over data privacy has intensified. Privacy advocates are calling for comprehensive federal legislation that would establish clear standards for data collection, use, and sale. They emphasize that companies handling sensitive data must obtain consent, ensure cybersecurity, and grant users rights over their information – standards currently unenforced at the federal level.
For now, Americans must rely on a patchwork of state protections and corporate goodwill to safeguard their personal information. The administration’s policies have created a clear winner in this new landscape: data brokers and surveillance technology companies, who now operate with fewer restrictions than at any point in recent history.
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