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Content type: Advocacy
In April, the UK government published what it called "plans for a world-leading package of online safety measures that also supports innovation and a thriving digital economy".
The White Paper which sets out plans for establishing in law a new duty of care towards users, overseen by a new regulatory body, aimed at making companies more accountable when it comes to illegal activity and content deemed "harmful", but not illegal.
As part of the plans, a public consultation…
Content type: Long Read
Everyday objects and devices that can connect to the Internet -- known as the Internet of Things (IoT) or connected devices -- play an increasing role in crime scenes and are a target for law enforcement. Exploiting new technologies that are in our homes and on our bodies as part of criminal investigations and for use as evidence, raises new challenges and risks that have not been sufficiently explored.
We believe that a discussion on the exploitation of IoT by law enforcement would…
Content type: Report
Like many others, PI were alarmed at recent reports that Facebook have been making mobile phone numbers (which users believed to be) provided for the express purpose of "two-factor authentication" (2FA) both searchable, and a target for advertising by default.
One of the myriad ways Facebook displays targeted adverts to users is through so-called "Custom Audiences". These "custom audiences" are lists of contact details, including phone numbers and email addresses, uploaded by advertisers.…
Content type: Explainer
We look at the recently published report on forensic science in the UK, highlight concerns about police not understanding new tech used to extract data from mobile phones; the risk of making incorrect inferences and the general lack of understanding about the capabilities of these tools.
The delivery of justice depends on the integrity and accuracy of evidence and trust that society has in it. So starts the damning report of the House of Lords Science and Technology Select…
Content type: Long Read
Image courtesy of Michael Coghlan
The long-speculated Facebook cryptocurrency is finally here! Libra!
Libra Association, an entity co-founded by Facebook, has announced the creation of a new cryptocurrency, Libra, "a simple global currency and financial infrastructure that empowers billions of people".
The white paper that outlines the rationale for the new currency makes a number of heady statements, some which anyone who cares about rights should commend -- and some which should…
Content type: News & Analysis
It's a big question, have you purchased a card for your local surveillance camera on Surveillance Camera Day?
Yes, Surveillance Camera Day is a real thing and happens on 20 June.
Perhaps your local community could create a bingo card to see who knows where all the local cameras are. Are there any on your local bins, how about the lampposts or a billboard?
Have you had a facial recognition van in your local community? Did you see the police helicopter crew video camera…
Content type: Long Read
The UK public, regulators, and parliamentarians have all expressed concern about the wide use of third-party data by all political parties in the UK and its impact on privacy and democracy. In the week the remaining six candidates to be the UK’s next Prime Minister are reduced to two, Privacy International takes a look at their privacy policies to illustrate how such policies can be used to identify the use of third-party data by political candidates from all political parties.
The…
Content type: Advocacy
In early June 2019, PI engaged in the UK's Centre for Data Ethics and Innovation consultation regarding online targeting. PI focused its submission on the use of targeting in online political and issue-based advertising, and the collection and use of data to target people online.
In considering the impact of online targeting, it is essential that the Centre for Data Ethics and Innovation have due regard for privacy as a fundamental right (as enshrined in UK, European, and International Law).…
Content type: Long Read
Join our campaign with Liberty and write to your local Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC). Your PCC works on your behalf to hold your local police force to account, so you can share your concerns about police spying tech with them.
You can download our new campaign pack (pdf link at the bottom of the page) to learn more about the police surveillance technology that might already be being used in your local area, and find out what you can do to get your police force to be more accountable to…
Content type: Long Read
IMAGE SOURCE: "My Phone Bought This" by oliver t is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0.
LAST UPDATE: 16th May 2022.
Mandatory SIM card registration laws require people to provide personal information, including a valid ID or even their biometrics, as a condition for purchasing or activating a SIM card. Such a requirement allows the state to identify the owner of a SIM card and infer who is most likely making a call or sending a message at any given time.
SIM card…
Content type: News & Analysis
One of the UK’s largest telecommunications operators, BT, has said to Privacy International that a report claiming it “co-produces malware” with a surveillance company for the GCHQ is inaccurate – but hasn’t said why or given any more details.
The accusation was made by C5IS – a shadowy online publication claiming to be “the most widely read source of information on surveillance technologies”. In its Big Black Book of Electronic Surveillance, it claims that SS8, a…
Content type: Long Read
When you go abroad, you expect to show your passport right? But what if immigration authorities wanted access to your Facebook, Instagram and Twitter accounts before they let you enter a country? What if they wanted to vet you based on your updates, photos, likes, retweets and even your DMs?
We think social media companies, who make literally billions of dollars out of you, and wield massive power and influence, should challenge governments on YOUR behalf. They should be protecting their users…
Content type: Case Study
This time, Amtis travels to year 2030 to get a sense of how the data rights framework played out:
I just moved into a new apartment and everything was a mess. My stuff was all over the place and I couldn't find anything. I received a notification on my dashboard that a delivery drone had arrived with my package.
Data rights dashboard
The dashboard showed me a summary report with information about how my data was handled: which company processed my order, the type of data that was collected…
Content type: Case Study
In this third leap to 2030, Amtis sees that people have created national data funds where citizens and governments together own the data that is being generated by sensors or by the services people use.
Here’s how Amtis lives this time:
Smart commuto-mobile
In the busiest parts of the city there are no more cars. There are only special lanes for drones, houndopacks – fast robots that run like dogs to deliver packages, and smart commuto-mobiles – slim electric booths where you can sit on your…
Content type: Case Study
In this next leap to year 2030, Amtis lives the life of a data labourer, being paid wages for data inputs. Here’s how Amtis begins the story:
I am in my green pyjamas, but I can’t say for sure if it’s morning or evening. My eyes are red from staring at screens. I am discouraged and very tired. Of course, all these emotions and reactions are registered by my Playbour – my pocket-sized smart console that has basically become my entire life. It’s my connection to family, friends and the world; my…
Content type: Case Study
In 2030 Amtis finds a future where property rights for data were adopted. Here’s how this future plays out:
My data, my turf. This was the first graffiti I saw as I was walking down the street and I said to myself, “Yeah, big corp, we’re going to get you good!”. I am fed up with companies making insane amounts of money from my data. If this is the game we’re playing, I want my fair share.
I was not the only one thinking like this. A few years back there was a strong push towards adopting…
Content type: Advocacy
Privacy International has today sent letters to leading social media platforms to ask what they're doing to protect their users' from dangerous surveillance by government immigration authorities.
The letter comes following the implementation of plans by US authorities to require nearly all visa applicants to hand over identifiers of all social media accounts they have used in the previous five years, or face “serious immigration consequences”.
The move not only represents…
Content type: People
Ilia is currently leading our strategic area that challenges government surveillance overreach. She also contributes to PI's legal strategy and is also responsible for some of our litigation and interventions before UK courts and the European Court of Human Rights. She leads our project that challenges mass surveillance to protect civic spaces.
Ilia is a qualified lawyer in Greece and has a PhD in International Law from the Faculty of Law of the University of Geneva, specialising in…
Content type: News & Analysis
Privacy International has joined a global coalition of privacy campaigners, tech companies, and technology experts to respond to proposals by British intelligence chiefs aimed at allowing them access to encrypted messaging apps such as WhatsApp or Signal.
If implemented, the proposals would allow government authorities to force messaging platforms to silently add a law enforcement participant to a group chat or call.
Such a capability poses serious threats to…
Content type: Explainer
Could an app you have never even heard of put you at risk? This is what happened to Chloe (real name has been changed), an investigative journalist exposed by an app that her source was using.
Her source was using TrueCaller, an app that aims to identify phone numbers so users can filter out calls, even if it is from a number they have never encountered before. TrueCaller relies on users tagging numbers who are calling them. And when your number is tagged there is no way for you to know that…
Content type: Case Study
Photo by Roger H. Goun
Chloe is an investigative journalist working for an international broadcast service; we will call the TV show she works for The Inquirer. She travels around the world to work with local journalists on uncovering stories that make the headlines: from human trafficking to drug cartels and government corruption. While her documentaries are watched by many and inspire change in the countries she works in, you would not know who Chloe is if we were to tell you her real name.…
Content type: Advocacy
The United Nations Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights, Philip Alston, is preparing a thematic report to the UN General Assembly on the human rights impacts, especially on those living in poverty, of the introduction of digital technologies in the implementation of national social protection systems. The report will be presented to the General Assembly in New York in October 2019.
As part of this process, the Special Rapporteur invited all interested governments, civil…
Content type: News & Analysis
US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), the agency at the centre of carrying out President Trump’s “zero tolerance” approach to immigration enforcement and family separation, has for years been contracting a US surveillance company to intercept peoples’ communications across the United States.
The wide potential scope for the use of the powers raises concerns about their use for the real-time surveillance of people, families, and communities caught up in Trump’s immigration…
Content type: Advocacy
Refugees are among the most vulnerable people in the world. From the moment they flee their homes, as they pass through 'temporary' places such as refugee camps and detention centres to their 'final' destinations, they are continuously exposed to threats. In the digital age, these threats are increasingly being driven by the processing of vast amounts of highly sensitive personal data: from enrollment and registration processes needed for them to access services, to their identification and…
Content type: Video
Watch our video primer (1m54s) on how political advertisers use highly detailed data about you to target political adverts at you.
Read about some simple steps you can take to minimise the amount of political ads you see online and questions you can be asking of those that profit from your data.
Content type: Examples
GDPR complaints about Real-Time Bidding (RTB) in the online advertising industry were filed today with Data Protection Authorities in Spain, the Netherlands, Belgium, and Luxembourg. The complaints detail the vast scale of personal data leakage by Google and other major companies in the “Ad Tech” industry. This week marks one year since the introduction of the GDPR.
The new complaints have been filed by Gemma Galdon Clavell (Eticas Foundation) and Diego Fanjul (Finch), David Korteweg (…