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Inquiries and Complaints

Contact By Mail

Correspondence to the Department of Justice, Office of Privacy and Civil Liberties, may be sent to:

Office of Privacy and Civil Liberties
Two Constitution Square (2CON)
145 N Street, NE
Suite 8W.300
Washington DC 20530

Contact By Email

Correspondences by e-mail may be sent to privacy@usdoj.gov. Complaints of privacy and civil liberties violations in connection with the Department’s handling of information may be directed to this email address.

Privacy and Civil Liberties Inquiries and Complaints

Members of the public may contact OPCL directly through its email inbox privacy@usdoj.gov and main phone number if they have other privacy and civil liberties inquiries and complaints, separate and apart from the Privacy Act requests detailed on the DOJ Privacy Act Requests page. In accordance with a variety of legal and policy requirements, OPCL works to ensure that all inquiries and complaints are properly reviewed and responses are appropriately provided and/or referred to components. Such inquiries and complaints may concern, for example, questions about the Department’s handling of PII or requests to correct inaccurate PII consistent with the objective of maintaining data quality, as well as other issues involving the proper handling of PII, including when PII, such as biometric information, is collected through technological means. OPCL will generally refer such inquiries and complaints to the appropriate component of the Department, which will typically review the inquiry or complaint and make a determination on an appropriate response. If a person is not satisfied with the response received from the component, OPCL can provide additional review.

Complaints of Civil Liberties Violations Involving DOJ Employees

The Office of the Inspector General (OIG) is an independent entity within the Department of Justice that investigates allegations of fraud, waste, abuse, and misconduct by Department of Justice employees, contractors, and grantees.

Section 1001 of the USA PATRIOT Act directs the Inspector General to review information and receive complaints alleging abuses of civil rights and civil liberties by Department of Justice employees. The OIG has created a special section in its Investigations Division to process these complaints. This section will identify the more serious civil rights and civil liberties allegations and assign them to OIG employees for investigation. The OIG will refer other complaints to Department components for their review and handling.

Individuals who believe that a Department of Justice employee has violated their civil rights or civil liberties may contact the OIG Hotline.

Updated January 11, 2023