According to an analysis that accuses the tech firm of removing evaluations and blocking new articles in tens of facilities used to detain immigrants in the United States, thousands of testimony about conditions in ICE confinement centers disappeared from Google Maps.

The investigation was led by Muira McCammon, a professor in Tulane University's Department of Communication, who had compiled reviews written by former detainees, their families, and others who had stories about the immigration and customs enforcement service's ( ICE ) headquarters.

A digital document that disappeared

In addition to identifying another 91 services where Google had now disabled the ability to post comments, McCammon collected a complete of 1, 636 evaluations in 2025, which correspond to 26 detention centers.

But, after rechecking the details, he discovered that almost all of the opinions had vanished.

The scientist told The Intercept that "almost all of the Google reviews I previously collected in 2025 are no longer available. "

McCammon contends in his research that the restraint used by Google ultimately results in the suppression of important information about the ICE detention system and a restriction of access to testimonies that frequently reveal the conditions inside these facilities.

Google defends its restraint plan.

Google spokesman Genevieve Park denied that the removals were in response to stress from the US government when consulted by the preceding media.

The spokesperson cited jails, police stations, and detention facilities as examples of "reviews helping people decide where to go," explaining that" we don't show reviews in types of places where people go without a decision. "

Google maintains that it has a policy in place that it has made known since 2023 to replace feedback where the reviews might be "unhelpful, harmful, or taken out of context. "

For its part, a Department of Homeland Security ( DHS) spokesperson assured the media that the organization had rejected any interference in the company's decisions and did not request the removal of the reviews.

Those who criticized the problems in the centres

Among the deleted messages were messages from family reporting issues with contacting detainees as well as rumors from previous prisoners about the conditions inside the facilities.

You can hardly hear the defendant when you call him on the phone, according to a review released by the preceding media in Spanish.

Other people referred to admitted insect infestations, a lack of translators, and extremely low cell temperatures.

These papers, in the eyes of McCammon, provided an overview of how the American immigration structure functions. He draws the conclusion that Google's tolerance decisions even affect the rankings of public institutions and the distribution of information about the ICE incarceration system in the overview of his research.

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