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Press release

UK Parliament passes most extreme surveillance law in UK history

Caroline Wilson Palow, General Counsel at Privacy International “The passage of the Investigatory Powers Act is a major blow to the privacy of people in the UK and all over the world. It sets a world-leading precedent, but not one of which the Government should be proud. Instead of reining in the

Press release

Privacy International calls on UK government to reveal secret intelligence sharing arrangements with the United States

Privacy International has today written to government ministers, members of the opposition, and oversight bodies reaffirming its call for the UK government to reveal secret intelligence sharing arrangements with the United States. The original UKUSA agreement — drafted shortly after World War II —

News & Analysis

En Argentina, Todavía No Es Tarde Para Hacer Las Cosas Bien En Materia de Privacidad

Este artículo fue co-escrita con Valeria Milanes de la Asociación por los Derechos Civiles (ADC). Una versión en ingles está disponible aquí. En Enero de 2015, el sistema de inteligencia de Argentina fue objeto de atención pública luego de la muerte del fiscal Alberto Nisman, debido a la presunta

News & Analysis

Why the Internet of Things Begs for a Paradigm Shift in Internet Security

The connectivity afforded by the internet has changed the world forever. While the increasing ‘corporatization’ of what many still feel is an open, non-hierarchical, largely uncensored and unfiltered ecosystem, this is increasingly not the case. The emergence of the ‘Internet of Things’ will soon

Long Read

Why Do We Still Accept That Governments Collect And Snoop On Our Data?

This piece was written by Ashley Gorski , who is an attorney at the American Civil Liberties Union, and PI legal officer Scarlet Kim and originally appeared in The Guardian here . In recent weeks, the Hollywood film about Edward Snowden and the movement to pardon the NSA whistleblower have renewed

Press release

New court judgment finds UK surveillance agencies collected everyone’s communications data unlawfully and in secret, for over a decade

Key points Bulk Communications Data (BCD) collection, commenced in March 1998, unlawful until November 2015 Bulk Personal Datasets regime (BPD), commenced c.2006, unlawful until March 2015 Everyone’s communications data collected unlawfully, in secret and without adequate safeguards until November

Long Read

BPD/BCD : IPT Judgment October 2016

On 17 October 2016, the Investigatory Powers Tribunal handed down judgment in a case brought by Privacy International against the Foreign Secretary, the Home Secretary and the three Security and Intelligence Agencies (MI5, MI6 and GCHQ). The case concerned the Agencies’ acquisition and use of bulk

Press release

Colombia’s record on privacy, surveillance, and human rights under renewed scrutiny at the United Nations

This week in Geneva, the UN Human Rights Committee will examine Colombia’s compliance with the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR). This review, by a body of independent experts charged with monitoring compliance with the ICCPR, comes just weeks after the peace deal between

News & Analysis

Indiscriminate investigation: new technology should not make us all fair game

As of October 1st, it has become impossible for the public to see footage from North Carolina police body cameras as a result of new law HB 972. This should be of concern to anyone who cares about police accountability and the balance of power in the new digital surveillance era. Increasingly, we

Long Read

How Bulk Interception Works

This week, Privacy International, together with nine other international human rights NGOs, filed submissions with the European Court of Human Rights. Our case challenges the UK government’s bulk interception of internet traffic transiting fiber optic cables landing in the UK and its access to

Press release

Privacy International’s initial reaction to EU export control proposal

PI Research Officer Edin Omanovic said: “The European Commission has proposed sweeping updates [PDF] to trade regulations in an effort to modernise the EU’s export control system and to ensure that the trade in surveillance technology does not facilitate human rights abuses or internal repression

Press release

Privacy International and nine other human rights organizations pursue landmark case at European Court of Human Rights directly challenging UK and US mass surveillance revealed by Edward Snowden

Key points Privacy International, Liberty, Amnesty International, and seven other human rights organizations challenge UK mass surveillance and UK access to US mass surveillance at the European Court of Human Rights This is the first case before the European Court of Human Rights to directly

Long Read

Friends, Followers, Police Officers, and Enemies: Social Surveillance in Thailand

This report examines the emergence of social media based surveillance in Thailand, carried out potentially by people’s own networks of friends and family. It looks at the severe impact this has on personal privacy and points to potential solutions. In May 2014, Thailand experienced a military coup –

Press release

David Anderson A Question of Trust report cover

David Anderson QC’s new report is an incomplete analysis of the case for mass surveillance powers

Caroline Wilson Palow, General Counsel, Privacy International said: “David Anderson QC’s report raises more questions than it answers. Anderson has not assessed the proportionality of the bulk powers he reviewed. Ultimately, the proportionality question is the crucial one. Would the public find

Press release

Press Release: Privacy International And Five Internet And Communications Providers Challenge British Government's Bulk Hacking Abroad Before The European Court Of Human Rights

Today, Privacy International, together with five internet and communications providers from around the world, have lodged an application before the European Court of Human Rights to challenge the British Government's use of bulk hacking abroad. Until we brought our original case at the Investigatory

Long Read

Monitoring the Surveillance Industry: Using data to protect privacy

Often when asked to discuss open data and privacy the objective is to successfully navigate the tension between the fundamental right to privacy, and the virtues of open data. And there is a tension. It is rare to see increased collection of data alongside greater privacy protections. The recently