EPIC Seeks Records on USDA’s Secretive Palantir Contracts Meant to Detect SNAP Fraud 

EPIC filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request on Wednesday seeking records about the U.S. Department of Agriculture contracting with Palantir Technologies to identify and investigate alleged waste, fraud, and abuse in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP).  

The request seeks any contracts, documents, analyses, and other records concerning two recently awarded Palantir contracts worth approximately $28 million, as well as communications related to Palantir’s support of SNAP benefits fraud detection and any associated work conducted under the USDA’s broader $300 million agreement with the $300 billion software company.  

Federal contracting data indicates that Palantir has received contracts to develop a “SNAP Fraud Identification and Case Workflow Platform Pilot Program” and a “SNAP Secure Network Starlight Platform,” but the USDA has disclosed little information about how these systems will process sensitive beneficiary data, identify suspected fraud, or interact with the agency’s broader efforts to centralize personal information of SNAP applicants and recipients.  

EPIC requested expedited processing on this FOIA Request, arguing that disclosure is urgently needed because the public lacks basic information about systems that could affect access to essential food assistance. These contracts may also be closely tied to the USDA’s ongoing efforts to expand collection of state-held SNAP data, which EPIC has continually challenged.