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Switching hats: why South Africa’s surveillance industry needs scrutiny
Content type: Long Read

Switching Hats: Why South Africa’s Surveillance Industry Needs Scrutiny

In July 2015, representatives of a private company met in a parking lot in Pretoria, South Africa to sell phone tapping technology to an interested private buyer. What they did not know was that this buyer was a police officer. The police had been tipped off that the company was looking to offload the surveillance technology, an IMSI catcher, to anyone who would buy it. It is illegal to operate such surveillance technology as a private citizen in South Africa, and illegal to buy…
Reports Of The Death Of Communications Privacy Are Greatly Exaggerated: Reflections On The Recent UN Human Rights Committee Findings On South Africa
Content type: News & Analysis

Reports Of The Death Of Communications Privacy Are Greatly Exaggerated: Reflections On The Recent UN Human Rights Committee Findings On South Africa

This guest piece was written by Jane Duncan of the Right2Know Campaign. It does not necessarily reflect the views or position of Privacy International. On 23rd March the United Nations Human Rights Committee released its assessment on South Africa’s compliance with the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR). The report includes a blistering attack on the Government for failing to respect the privacy of the communications of users and makes…