Palantir’s VeRA and Gotham software, used by U.S. intelligence and police for data analysis and predictive policing, is raising alarms over privacy and data control.
Critics argue that its ability to link millions of data points from diverse sources threatens personal freedoms. In the German state of Baden-Württemberg, a €25 million, five-year contract to use Gotham has been approved, despite legal uncertainties and coalition disputes.
The software will allegedly face oversight, but its adoption in states like Bavaria, Hesse, and North Rhine-Westphalia, and interest from Germany’s Federal Ministry of the Interior, suggests wider use is imminent.
Opponents criticize Palantir’s deep ties to U.S. intelligence and its potential to enable mass surveillance.
They warn that beyond crime-fighting, the software could be used to monitor dissent or “hate” crimes, raising ethical concerns. Supporters, however, argue it equips law enforcement to match criminals’ digital tactics, provided it stays within legal bounds.
Gotham is used in several European Union states:
Denmark: Since 2017, Danish police have used the POL-INTEL predictive policing system, built on Palantir’s Gotham platform. It employs a “heat map” to identify high-crime areas, aiding law enforcement in resource allocation.
Greece: In 2020, Palantir signed a deal with the Greek government to manage personal data during the COVID-19 pandemic, raising privacy concerns due to its non-transparent nature.
France: France’s internal security agency used Palantir’s Gotham software from 2016 to 2023, following the Paris terror attacks, but reportedly transitioned to a national system thereafter.
Netherlands: Palantir has worked indirectly with Europol since 2012 through a Dutch IT consultancy, Capgemini, and directly via a 2016 framework agreement (€7.5 million) for Gotham to analyze big data for crime and terrorism.
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