Catherine Crump is the Robert Glushko Clinical Professor of Practice in Technology Law at UC Berkeley School of Law and Director of the Samuelson Law, Technology & Public Policy Clinic. A leading expert on the intersection of civil liberties and emerging technologies, she has written and litigated extensively on government surveillance, privacy, and criminal justice reform. She also serves as faculty Co-Director of the Berkeley Center for Law & Technology.
Professor Crump previously served as a Senior Policy Advisor for Criminal Justice to the White House Domestic Policy Council, where she helped lead the implementation of key federal initiatives on policing and public safety. Earlier in her career, she was a staff attorney at the ACLU, where she litigated landmark cases on electronic surveillance and testified before Congress, the European Parliament, and multiple state legislatures.
Her scholarly work has appeared in flagship law reviews, and she is a frequent commentator in national media outlets, with her writing appearing in The Los Angeles Times, The Washington Post, and CNN. A TED Fellow and recipient of Stanford Law School’s Miles L. Rubin Public Interest Award, Professor Crump is widely recognized for her commitment to using law and technology to advance transparency, accountability, and justice.
Education
B.A., Stanford University (2000)
J.D., Stanford Law School (2004)
Catherine Crump is teaching the following courses in Fall 2025:
• 285.9 sec. 001 - Samuelson Clinic Seminar
• 295.5T sec. 001 - Samuelson Clinic
• 295.5U sec. 001 - Advanced Samuelson Clinic
Courses During Other Semesters
| Semester | Course Num | Course Title |  Teaching Evaluations | Spring 2026 | 285.9 sec. 001 | Samuelson Clinic Seminar | 285.9B sec. 001 | Advanced Samuelson Clinic Seminar | 295.5T sec. 001 | Samuelson Clinic | 295.5U sec. 001 | Advanced Samuelson Clinic | Spring 2025 | 285.9 sec. 001 | Samuelson Clinic Seminar | View Teaching Evaluation | 295.5T sec. 001 | Samuelson Clinic | View Teaching Evaluation | 295.5U sec. 001 | Advanced Samuelson Clinic | View Teaching Evaluation | Fall 2024 | 285.9 sec. 001 | Samuelson Clinic Seminar | View Teaching Evaluation | 295.5T sec. 001 | Samuelson Clinic | View Teaching Evaluation | Spring 2024 | 285.9 sec. 001 | Samuelson Clinic Seminar | View Teaching Evaluation | 295.5T sec. 001 | Samuelson Clinic | View Teaching Evaluation | 295.5U sec. 001 | Advanced Samuelson Clinic | View Teaching Evaluation |
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Trump administration relying on unmarked vehicles in immigration enforcement
“You have to be able to identify officers so you can vindicate your constitutional rights when they’re violated,” said Professor Catherine Crump. “And to the extent, this is yet another step ICE agents are taking to conceal their identities and avoid accountability.”
GOP threatens clampdown on social media after Charlie Kirk suspect allegedly confessed on Discord
Catherine Crump, a clinical professor at UC Berkeley School of Law, said messaging and social media platforms have a virtual “ironclad immunity” from the content made by its users under Sec. 230. She noted that the law has long been viewed as out of date — artificial intelligence and algorithms to monitor speech or content, she noted, did not exist when it was passed — but the platforms are protected from their own content until an act of Congress makes changes.
L.A. County moves to keep ICE away from data that show where people drive
“When you collect this data, it’s really hard to control,” said Catherine Crump, director of UC Berkeley’s Technology & Public Policy Clinic. “It’s no different from once you share your data with Meta or Google, they’re going to repackage your data and sell it to advertisers and you don’t have any idea which of the advertising companies have your data.”
Opinion: The government’s massive data dragnet isn’t about efficiency — it’s about fear
“People should understand — and be alarmed — that once these data silos come down, they won’t go back up,” writes Professor Catherine Crump. “The power to track, target and punish will exist for every future administration.”
This conversation is being recorded — and so is everything else you do in San Francisco
Professors Catherine Crump and Chris Hoofnagle weigh in on AI wearables and the legality of recording everything.
FBI uses facial recognition technology, online photos to identify and arrest ICE Portland protester
“We need safeguards to ensure that this powerful technology is used in a way that advance legitimate law enforcement interests, but that stave off possibilities of abuse,” said Professor Catherine Crump.
Tech tools to track protesters accused of interfering with ICE
Catherine Crump, technology law professor at UC Berkeley School of Law gives insight on location data tech used to track dissidents.
Year in Review: The Stories That Made 2024 Memorable and Meaningful for UC Berkeley Law
From a Supreme Court justice’s visit and an innovative leadership initiative to impactful pro bono work and influential AI guidance, the school’s commitment to excellence, community, and public mission was on full display.
Olympics’ AI Security Stokes Backlash Over Mass Surveillance
Catherine Crump, director of University of California, Berkeley’s Samuelson Law, Technology & Public Policy Clinic weighs in on the controversy surrounding the Olympics’ AI security.
Greatest Hits: A Dozen Stories From 2023 That Reflect Berkeley Law’s Impact
From helping to write a tribe’s constitution to providing free training worldwide on digital investigations of human rights violations to propelling crypto industry reform, the school had quite a year.
An abused wife took on Tesla over tracking tech. She lost.
“Stalkers always find a way to use location data, making this problem “totally foreseeable,” said Catherine Crump, a Berkeley Law School professor specializing in privacy issues involving technology. “It is disappointing that a company as sophisticated and well-resourced as Tesla doesn’t have better answers to this,” said Crump, who is also a former adviser to the White House Domestic Policy Council.
Two Professors Start Tech-Related White House Appointments to Help Shape U.S. Policy
Privacy experts Catherine Crump and Rebecca Wexler take on key posts with the White House Domestic Policy Council and White House Office of Science Technology Policy, respectively.
Standing Firm: How Berkeley Law Faculty and Students are Stepping Up to Advance and Defend Basic Rights
With basic rights in peril at home and around the world, the law school community is answering the call.
Abortion Is Illegal for Millions. Will Big Tech Help Prosecute It?
“We live our lives online, we leave digital breadcrumbs of our prior activities, and of course those are going to be caught up in abortion investigations,” says Professor Catherine Crump, director of the Samuelson Law, Technology and Public Policy Clinic. Tech companies will almost certainly comply with state law and hand over information from legal court orders, but they should be transparent with their users and the public when they do and disclose how many abortion-related court orders they get, she adds.
Cellphone Data Collection, Tracking Apps Can Help States Prosecute Women Seeking Abortions
“If you have a period tracking app, you should delete it,” says Professor Catherine Crump, director of the Samuelson Law, Technology & Policy Clinic. “Tech companies like everyone else has to comply with law and they may not have a choice about what data they collect, what data they are forced to disclose. The law enforcement agency gets a warrant and serves it on Google and asks for location information and it’s a valid warrant. Google is going to have a hard time not complying with that.”
North Star: Student Calls for More Access to Surveillance Requests in Minnesota Federal Court
Samuelson Clinic student Jennifer Sun ’23 and supervising attorney Megan Graham argue for more public access to surveillance records requests in Minnesota federal court.
Immigrant groups sue ICE for information on alternative detention programs
Professor Catherine Crump, Director of the Samuelson Law, Technology & Public Policy Clinic, filed suit on behalf of a coalition of immigrant rights groups seeking information from Immigrations and Customs Enforcement about the agency’s Intensive Supervision Appearance Program, a so- called alternative to detention program that has ballooned during the Biden administration
How CNN, The New York Times and Other Major Media Outlets Monetize Your Data and Lobby Against Regulation
Professor Catherine Crump, Director of the Samuelson Law, Technology & Public Policy Clinic, notes the ACLU’s decision to use tracking technology was made by the ACLU’s fundraising and advocacy team, not its legal department, which often does not work in tandem
Agencies Seek Reversal in FOIA Suit Over Trump Administration Vetting at US Border
Professor Catherine Crump, Director of the Samuelson Law, Technology & Public Policy Clinic, arguing before the Second Circuit on behalf of the plaintiffs in Knight First Amendment Institute v. United States Citizenship and Immigration Services, said that the Trump Administration’s alleged “ideological screening” of immigrants and refugees at the border included questions that were too widely asked and general
Teaching Tech: Berkeley Law Clinic Arms Public Defenders with Digital Tools
The Samuelson Clinic’s Megan Graham has trained more than 1,000 public defenders in three years on how to litigate cutting-edge technology issues.