One user in July 2025 wrote, “ERO is too busy dressing up as a black ops commando with tactical body armor, drop down thigh rigs, balaclavas, multiple M4 magazines, and Punisher patches, to make an admin arrest of a non-criminal, non-violent EWI who weighs 90 pounds and is 5 foot 2, inside a secure federal building where everyone is screened for weapons.” Has gone.” (ERO stands for Enforcement and Removal Operations; along with HSI, it is one of the two major divisions of ICE and is responsible for detaining and deporting immigrants.)
The forum describes itself as a space for current and prospective HSI agents, “designed for experienced HSI special agents as well as applicants for entry-level special agent positions.” HSI is the division within ICE whose agents are typically responsible for investigating crimes such as drug trafficking, terrorism, and human trafficking.
In the forums, users discuss their discomfort with America’s mass deportation efforts, debate the way federal agents have interacted with protesters and the public, and complain about the state of their working conditions. Members have also had heated discussions about the shooting of two protesters, Renee Good and Alex Pretty, in Minneapolis and methods of immigration enforcement across the US.
This forum is one of several related forums where people working in different parts of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) share experiences and discuss the specific details of their work. WIRED previously reported on a forum where current and former deportation officers from ICE and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) similarly complained about their jobs and discussed the way the agency was conducting immigration raids. The HSI forum appears to be connected, it even has some of the same members.
People are not required to show proof of their employment to join these forums, and the platforms do not appear to be heavily regulated. WIRED has not confirmed the individual identities of these posters, though they shared details that would likely only be known to people familiar with the job. There are over 2,000 members with posts dating back to at least 2004.
DHS and ICE did not respond to requests for comment.
Following the murders of both Good and Pretty, forum members became heavily divided. In a January 12 thread, five days after Good was shot by ICE agent Jonathan Ross, a poster who has been a part of the forum since 2016 wrote, “IMHO, the state of ICE operations has reached unprecedented levels of violence on the part of both suspects and the general public. I hope the AG is considering a temporary suspension of civil liberties, (during) and in the geographic locations where ICE operations are being conducted. are).”
A user who joined the forum in 2018 and identifies as a recently retired agent responded, “This is an excellent idea and well justified. These are organized, well-financed civil unrest, dare I say insurrection?”
In a post titled “The Shooting” on January 16, some posters took a more nuanced approach. “I guess legally it’s a good shoot and all that, but he just had to step aside, he almost shot one of his guys for God’s sake!” wrote a poster who joined the forum for the first time in March 2022. “Why was a USC female non-criminal shot in the head on TV? Just doesn’t sit well with me… An experienced SRT guy who was capable of killing someone while holding a phone, I think he could have easily gotten out of the way.” SRT refers to ICE’s elite special response team, which undergoes specialized training to operate in high-risk situations. USC refers to US citizens.
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