Accenture Files Leak – New Research Reveals Projects Controlling Billions of User Data

A new research report released today by Progressive International, Expose Accenture, and the Movement Research Unit uncovers the sprawling influence of Accenture, the world’s largest consultancy firm, in driving a global wave of surveillance, exclusion, and authoritarianism.

The investigation reveals how Accenture has become essential to security states worldwide, channeling public resources into private ownership while utilizing invasive technologies.

Spanning 41 contracts across four continents, the report details Accenture’s alliances with tech surveillance giants like Palantir, founded by Peter Thiel, to secure lucrative government deals.

One prominent example is a £480 million contract with the UK’s National Health Service (NHS) for a data platform, raising concerns about privatization and privacy breaches due to Palantir’s military connections.

The findings paint Accenture as a shadowy force shaping policies that prioritize control over civil liberties.

Accenture’s roots lie in Arthur Andersen, the accounting firm embroiled in the Enron collapse. Rebranded in 2001 and incorporated in Bermuda later, Ireland for tax benefits, Accenture secured a low 3.5% tax rate compared to the UK’s 24%.

Its meteoric rise came post-9/11 with a U.S. Department of Homeland Security contract for the US-VISIT program, creating a biometric database tracking 200 million people. Leaked emails later showed Accenture rigged the bidding process, even occupying government offices prematurely.

Now employing 750,000 people across 49 countries with $64.1 billion in 2023 revenue, Accenture ranks among the top U.S. government contractors, working with agencies like ICE and the Department of Defense. Its global footprint includes an office hosting an Israeli consulate, reads the Reactionary report.

Digital Surveillance Empire

The Accenture Files expose the firm’s role in constructing biometric and predictive policing systems worldwide. Key projects include:

• India’s Aadhaar (2010): Managing the world’s largest biometric database, covering 1.3 billion people, with rights to store and link data.
• UNHCR Biometrics (2015): Collecting data on 450,000 refugees in Thailand and Chad.
• Finland Migration (Recent): A €50-100 million contract to automate immigration processes.

Internal documents reveal Accenture’s vision of a “futuristic surveillance network” using facial recognition, cameras, and fingerprint readers.

The firm has also pushed predictive policing, with contracts like a £80 million deal with London’s Metropolitan Police and projects in India’s Uttar Pradesh and Bihar using facial recognition to monitor crowds. A Rotterdam welfare fraud algorithm was criticized for ethnic and gender bias, performing barely better than random guesses.

Accenture’s alliance with Palantir, launched in 2022 with a joint innovation center, amplifies its surveillance reach. Both firms attended the 2024 “AI for War” conference, signaling a push for militarized AI. Their NHS contract has drawn protests over Palantir’s ties to Israeli intelligence and IDF bombing systems.

The report also uncovers Accenture’s role in brokering military and surveillance tech transfers between Israel and India. In 2017, it proposed leveraging India’s engineering for Israeli defense firms, coinciding with $2 billion in exports.

Accenture’s acquisition of Israeli cyberwarfare firm Maglan, linked to controversial military operations, and investment in Team8, founded by a Unit 8200 veteran, deepen this nexus. The IINSPIRE initiative with NASSCOM aims to expand the collaboration between Israel and India in surveillance.

The investigation reveals a pattern of bid-rigging and failure:

• Angola (2020): $54 million tied to money laundering for Isabel dos Santos.
• U.S. (2018-2019): A $297 million border agent recruitment contract yielded two hires.
• Scotland (2013): A $58 million police IT contract collapsed, costing Accenture $14.8 million in settlements.
• Luxembourg (2019): A $200 million tax evasion settlement.

Despite these scandals, Accenture secured £350 million from the UK government in 2023 as a “Strategic Supplier,” highlighting its entrenched government ties.

With consulting spending soaring, UK contracts hit $3.95 billion by 2022, Canada’s reached $16.4 billion in 2020—Accenture’s role in privatizing public services and enabling state repression grows.

The report labels it a cornerstone of the “Reactionary International,” deciding who is flagged as “risky” or detained, often targeting minorities and activists.

Progressive International urges global investigators to scrutinize Accenture’s contracts, often evading public oversight. Unlike Palantir or Lockheed Martin, Accenture operates with less scrutiny, cloaked in corporate respectability. The Accenture Files aim to spark a reckoning for a firm profiting from surveillance and state violence.