(Global Campus of Human Rights, 2019)
El-Ashy, Ola; Maroni, Ilaria; Mizyed, Hazem; Nammar, Razan; Al-Maskati, Mohammed
The article analyses digital surveillance companies and the
possibilities that technology makes available to oppressive regimes: from
monitoring centres facilitating mass surveillance on all telecommunications, to
firewalls that filter what users can access, and spyware that tap into the
information stored in any personal device connected to the internet. This grim
picture of new technologies becomes significantly darker when taking into
account the volume of this ‘international repression trade’ and the market value
of surveillance companies operating in states self-identified as democracies.
Key words: digital rights; surveillance; cyber-crime legislation; right to privacy;
freedom of expression; national security; cyberwar; information technology;
human rights defenders
