The system gives the agency access to billions of license plate records and new powers of real-time location tracking, raising significant concerns from civil libertarians.

The source of the data is not named in the contract, but an ICE representative said the data came from Vigilant Solutions, the leading network for license plate recognition data. "Like most other law enforcement agencies, ICE uses information obtained from license plate readers as one tool in support of its investigations," spokesperson Dani Bennett said in a statement. "ICE is not seeking to build a license plate reader database, and will not collect nor contribute any data to a national public or private database through this contract."

Reached by The Verge, Vigilant declined to confirm any contract with ICE. "As policy, Vigilant Solutions is not at liberty to share any contractual details," the company said in a statement. "This is a standard agreement between our company, our partners, and our clients."