DHS officials are able to issue „administrative subpoenas“ to tech companies demanding data on users without aproval from a judge.
The US government has found a frighteningly efficient way to keep tabs on citizens who criticize the government: just demand their personal data from Google.
According to recent reporting from the , a 67-year-old retiree sent a polite email to an attorney for the Department of Homeland Security urging mercy for an asylum seeker facing deportation to Afghanistan. The man, identified only as Jon, had read about the Afghani native’s case, and his fear that he would be persecuted should he ever return to his home country.
“Don’t play Russian roulette with [this man’s] life,” Jon told lead DHS prosecutor, Joseph Dernbach, in the email. “Err on the side of caution. There’s a reason the US government along with many other governments don’t recognise the Taliban. Apply principles of common sense and decency.”
Five hours later, per WaPo, Jon received a response — not from Dernbach or the DHS, but from Google.
“Google has received legal process from a Law Enforcement authority compelling the release of information related to your Google Account,” it read. The email advised Jon that the “legal process” was an administrative subpoena, issued by DHS. Soon, government agents would arrive at his home.
The subpoena wasn’t approved by any judge, and it didn’t require probable cause. Google gave Jon just seven days to challenge it in federal court — not nearly enough time for someone without a crack team of lawyers on retainer. Even more maddeningly, neither Google nor DHS had sent him a copy of the subpoena itself, leaving Jon and his attorney in the dark.
“How do you challenge a subpoena you don’t have a copy of?” an attorney Jon consulted, Judi Bernstein-Baker, told WaPo.
As DHS assistant secretary Tricia McLaughlin told the newspaper in a statement, the law grants the department “broad administrative subpoena authority,” meaning legal demands from DHS officials don’t need to pass independent review.
“There’s no oversight ahead of time, and there’s no ramifications for having abused [administrative subpoenas] after the fact,” Jennifer Granick, an attorney for the American Civil Liberties Union — which is representing Jon pro bono — told WaPo. “As we are increasingly in a world where unmasking critics is important to the administration, this type of legal process is ripe for that kind of abuse.”
When uniformed DHS agents did show up at Jon’s front door weeks later, they grilled him for over 20 minutes, pointing to his mentions of “Russian roulette” and the “Taliban” as suspicious. In the end, the field grunts — who had been dispatched by an anonymous official in Washington DC — agreed Jon hadn’t broken any laws.
When Jon finally received a copy of the subpoena from Google — 22 days after they issued their seven-day notice — it demanded his data going back weeks: timestamps for his online activity, every known IP and physical address, his credit card, driver’s license, and Social Security numbers.
“It doesn’t take that much to make people look over their shoulder, to think twice before they speak again,” Nathan Freed Wessler, another of Jon’s ACLU attorneys, told WaPo. “That’s why these kinds of subpoenas and other actions — the visits — are so pernicious. You don’t have to lock somebody up to make them reticent to make their voice heard.”
“Our processes for handling law enforcement subpoenas are designed to protect users’ privacy while meeting our legal obligations,” a Google spokesperson told WaPo. “We review all legal demands for legal validity, and we push back against those that are overbroad or improper, including objecting to some entirely.”
Credit where it’s due, though: Google delayed handing over Jon’s data long enough for the ACLU to challenge the subpoena on his behalf, though it didn’t explain why. Of course, that meant DHS agents still tracked down his address some other way — part of a growing trend of federal agencies surveilling and harassing random people who haven’t even been arrested, let alone convicted of a crime.

In the name of security, Microsoft is ditching support for old, legacy printer drivers in Windows 11.
In the name of security for its ubiquitous OS, Microsoft is ditching support for legacy V3 and V4 printer drivers in Windows 11. Microsoft previously warned this was coming way back in September 2023, but the updates that remove support for the legacy drivers are starting to roll out as of January 2026, and select users are highly displeased. Microsoft notes that „most customers use newer printer drivers or modern printing solutions“, but with a large population of users who prefer older printers for various, this news is a definite bummer.
Especially for budget conatrained users or smaller businesses, simply cutting support for perfectly-working hardware seems like a costly, heavy-handed approach to security from Microsoft, although printers have posed security risks in the past. Making updates like this optional would still alert users of the security risks, but allow them to asses for themselves when it needs to be fixed and what business-critical operations (like those tied to a modem, printer, fax machine, etc.) can still be run in the meantime. Updates like these also continue to exacerbate the issues of forced e-waste epitomized by the Windows 11 TPM and Secure Boot requirements.Microsoft officially advises users to contact printer manufacturers and „update to a supported printer driver or another current printing solution“. Thanks to the age of the original deprecation announcement, printer manufacturers selling basic printers still reliant on the V3 and V4 driver models have had time to update, and a number of users report painless upgrades. Users of multi-function printers, however, have reported more issues, though, so your mileage may vary.
Hopefully, users impacted will understand why their devices are no longer working and are able to keep them up and running sooner rather than later—but in some extreme cases, postponing updates or using an older version of Windows may wind up being the only solution.

Stuffcool Zeno 65W GaN wall charger launches in India with a retractable USB-C cable, PD and PPS support, laptop charging, and a Rs. 2,999 price tag.
Stuffcool has introduced the Zeno 65, a 65W GaN wall charger targeting smartphones, tablets, and USB-C laptops. The BIS-certified device, manufactured in India, integrates a retractable USB-C cable to minimize cable clutter during travel.
The charger delivers 65W through USB Power Delivery and PPS standards, supporting MacBook Air, Samsung Super Fast Charging 2.0, and compatible iPhone and Google Pixel devices. Stuffcool claims these phones can reach 50 percent charge in approximately 30 minutes with supported fast-charging profiles.
The built-in USB-C cable extends to 68 cm and retracts completely into the charger body. Users must handle the mechanism carefully, as Stuffcool excludes damage from excessive pulling under its replacement policy. The charger also includes a separate USB-C port. When both outputs operate simultaneously, power splits to 45W and 20W. Either output alone delivers the full 65W.
GaN technology enables higher efficiency and improved thermal management within a compact design. The charger accepts AC 100–240V input at 50/60Hz and provides output profiles up to 20V at 3.25A, with PPS ranging from 5V to 11V at 4.5A.
Weighing 130 g (±10 g) and measuring 6.25 × 4.58 × 4.1 cm, the Zeno 65 fits easily into backpacks and laptop bags. Its single-port design alongside the integrated cable offers flexibility for charging multiple device types without carrying additional cables.
The Zeno 65 is priced at Rs. 2,999 and available through Stuffcool’s official website and Amazon India.