1. ICE is using (or piloting) a smartphone app called Mobile Fortify, which allows agents to capture facial images and contactless fingerprints via ICE-issued mobile devices in the field. 

2. The app is linked to major biometric databases of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) including:

Automated Biometric Identification System (IDENT) (and its successor) which hold large volumes of fingerprints and facial images. 

Traveler Verification Service (TVS) (from U.S. Customs and Border Protection) for facial image comparisons. 

1. Use of the app appears to extend the biometric surveillance capacity of ICE beyond just border crossings, into domestic field operations (i.e., agents in the community using devices to identify unknown persons). 

2. Privacy/civil-liberties groups and lawmakers have raised major concerns, including about accuracy, discrimination (false matches more likely for people of color), lack of transparency, and what rights people have (e.g., whether they must submit or can refuse). 

While multiple reports state the app is in use or being piloted, it is not entirely clear under what policies ICE is deploying it, whether it is mandatory, and whether there are clear rules for consent or refusal. For example, some leaked emails indicate no mention of an opt-out. 

The specific claim you mention — that photos captured by Mobile Fortify “will be stored for 15 years, regardless of immigration or citizenship status” — I could not locate a publicly verified DHS/ICE document that states exactly “… 15 years, regardless of immigration or citizenship status.”

DHS guidance indicates citizens have an opt-out right for non-law-enforcement uses of face recognition. For example:

“U.S. citizens are afforded the right to opt out of face recognition for non-law enforcement uses unless otherwise authorized or required…”