An investigation by 404 Media reveals that ICE and CBP officers are using Zello, a free consumer walkie-talkie app that was previously used to coordinate the January 6 insurrection, for official law enforcement operations. This is a massive operational security failure.
Let me be extremely clear about what's happening here: federal law enforcement agencies are running operations on an unencrypted consumer app that anyone can monitor with the right channel information. This includes communications during a shooting incident where a CBP officer shot a US citizen.
From a security perspective, this is insane. Zello is a consumer application designed for things like coordinating volunteer groups or staying in touch during disasters. It is explicitly not designed for law enforcement communications that need to be secure, encrypted, and auditable.
The government has secure communication systems. They exist. They're designed exactly for this purpose—encrypted, monitored, with proper access controls and audit logs. The fact that federal agents are instead using a free app that insurrectionists were comfortable using because it's hard to trace should terrify anyone concerned about government accountability.
Think about what this means operationally. Any operation discussed on Zello is potentially compromised. If targets know which channels to monitor, they can hear law enforcement coordinating in real-time. If oversight bodies want to review what was said during an incident, there may be no reliable record. If agents are abusing their authority, the communications are much harder to audit.
The 404 Media investigation found "multiple users of Zello linked to ICE officials," including officers at the scene of a shooting. This isn't one rogue agent using an unsecured app—it's systemic enough that investigators could identify multiple official uses.
What makes this particularly concerning is Zello's history. The platform was used to coordinate activities during the January 6 Capitol attack. It's known for hosting "hundreds of far-right channels." This is not exactly the kind of platform you'd expect federal law enforcement to choose for official communications.
One security researcher noted: "Using consumer apps for law enforcement operations means you're trusting a third-party company with operational security. You have no control over who else has access, how the data is stored, or what happens if the company gets compromised."
There are legitimate technical reasons why agents might prefer Zello over official systems. It works on consumer smartphones. It's easy to use. It doesn't require specialized equipment. But those conveniences come at the cost of security, auditability, and accountability—exactly the things that should be non-negotiable for law enforcement communications.
This also raises questions about oversight. If agents are conducting operations on channels that aren't officially monitored or logged, how does anyone review whether they followed proper procedures? If something goes wrong during an operation, how do you reconstruct what happened if the communications were on an ephemeral consumer app?
The timing matters too. This investigation comes during expanded deportation operations under the current administration. The use of insecure, unmonitored communication channels during controversial law enforcement activities is exactly the kind of thing that enables abuse and prevents accountability.
From a policy perspective, this should be straightforward to fix. Agencies should have clear policies: official operations require official, secure communication systems. No exceptions. The fact that federal agents are using Zello suggests either the policies don't exist, or they're not being enforced.
The technology for secure law enforcement communications exists and is widely deployed. There's no good reason for federal agents to be using the same consumer app that was used to coordinate an insurrection. The fact that they are suggests either massive organizational failure or deliberate avoidance of oversight.
Either way, it's a scandal. Federal law enforcement agencies are running operations on an insecure consumer platform with a documented history of being used for extremist coordination. That's not acceptable, and the fact that it took an independent investigation to expose it suggests the agencies themselves weren't exactly rushing to address the problem.
