We Tracked Every Visitor to Epstein Island | WIRED

Summary

A *WIRED* investigation has uncovered secret data revealing the precise locations of nearly 200 individuals who visited Epstein's Little St. James island between 2016 and 2019. This data, collected by the location broker Near Intelligence, shows detailed travel paths, including visitors' origins, routes, and destinations. The investigation raises serious concerns about privacy, surveillance, and the role of data brokers in digital advertising. While the data reveals connections to wealthy individuals and high-profile figures, it also highlights the dangers of personal information being exposed and misused due to lax privacy laws.

Takeaways

• 😀 The secret data of Jeffrey Epstein's island was uncovered by WIRED, revealing nearly 200 mobile phone data points from visitors to Little St. James, which helped map their precise movements to the island.
• 😀 The collected data exposed the extensive use of surveillance and tracking by a company called Near Intelligence, which recorded the movements of visitors to Epstein's island between 2016 and 2019.
• 😀 The investigation revealed that the tracking of visitors was not limited to Epstein Island, but continued long after their departure, including precise routes they took to the island and their activities before and after their visit.
• 😀 Data points showed visitors traveling through key locations such as St. Thomas, Florida, New York, and various other places across the U.S., raising questions about the involvement of wealthy and influential individuals.
• 😀 Despite Epstein's 2008 conviction for sex offenses, the data indicates that high-profile visitors continued frequenting his island until his arrest in 2019.
• 😀 The Near Intelligence data exposed the exact locations of homes and businesses in high-income areas like Palm Beach and Martha's Vineyard, potentially revealing the residences of victims or employees connected to Epstein's operations.
• 😀 The investigation highlights how personal data can be easily obtained through digital advertising and location tracking, often without user consent or awareness, raising concerns about privacy and security.
• 😀 The data reveals no European visitors to the island, which may be due to Europe’s robust data protection laws, particularly GDPR, which limits such tracking in contrast to the U.S.'s more lenient privacy regulations.
• 😀 WIRED's analysis also uncovered other instances of privacy violations, including geofencing reports on random locations such as a mall in the Netherlands and a park in Texas, illustrating the widespread vulnerabilities of personal data.
• 😀 Following Epstein's death in 2019, the island was purchased by billionaire Stephen Decoff in 2023, who plans to build a luxury resort on Little St. James, expected to open in 2025.
• 😀 The use of location data was also pivotal in tracking down Ghislaine Maxwell, Epstein's accomplice, who was arrested after federal agents tracked her to a home using cell phone location data.

Q & A

What is the significance of the data collected from mobile phones of visitors to Epstein Island?

The data collected from almost 200 mobile phones reveals detailed movement patterns of visitors to Epstein's private island, including their origins, travel paths, and time spent at various locations on the island, offering crucial insights into the network of influential individuals who frequented the island despite Epstein's criminal history.

Who collected the location data, and how was it obtained?

The location data was collected by a data broker called Near Intelligence, now known as Azira, which gathered information from mobile phones visiting Epstein Island between 2016 and 2019. This data was later exposed online and provided a map of visitors' movements on the island and surrounding areas.

How precise was the data collected from the visitors' phones?

The data was extremely precise, allowing for the mapping of visitors' movements to within centimeters. This included pinpointing the exact locations of the visitors, both on the island and in areas before and after their visits.

What does the map of Epstein Island reveal about visitors' activities?

The map shows the most visited spots on Epstein Island, such as the main house, pool, beaches, the Hilltop Temple, and various other locations where visitors spent time. It also highlights routes visitors took to reach the island, including travel via private jets, yachts, and helicopters.

What role did privacy laws play in the data collection process?

Privacy laws, specifically the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) in Europe, may have influenced the absence of European data in the collected dataset. GDPR offers robust protection against personal data collection, which could explain the lack of data points from European visitors to Epstein Island.

What are the implications of the data revealing wealthy and influential individuals' involvement?

The data suggests that many wealthy and influential individuals continued to visit Epstein Island even after Epstein's 2008 conviction for sex crimes, raising significant concerns about the use of power, privilege, and influence to evade legal consequences.

How did the data extend beyond Epstein Island?

The data not only tracked visitors on Epstein Island but also followed their movements after leaving, revealing detailed information about their locations across the United States, including homes, workplaces, and other significant places in cities like Miami, New York, and Palm Beach.

What does the data say about Epstein's business connections?

The data suggests that Epstein's business connections and network extended beyond his island, with visitors linked to high-profile locations such as luxury resorts, private yacht harbors, and businesses in major U.S. cities, hinting at the global scale of his operations.

What is the significance of the locations pinpointed in the data?

The locations pinpointed in the data often correspond to wealthy or exclusive areas, such as gated communities and luxury residences in locations like Palm Beach, Martha’s Vineyard, and Miami, indicating that the visitors to Epstein Island were likely part of elite social and business circles.

How did the digital advertising and data brokerage industries contribute to the collection of this data?

The digital advertising and data brokerage industries played a key role in collecting this data by using location tracking features in mobile apps. Data brokers like Near Intelligence aggregate, analyze, and sell this data, which can be used for targeted advertising or, in this case, for mapping movements without the knowledge of the individuals involved.