Citations

What’s wrong with mass surveillance of travel metadata?

­February, 24 2014

We think the same International Principles on the Application of Human Rights to Communications Surveillance should be applied to travel surveillance and travel metadata collection.

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When elephants fight: Communications surveillance on the rise in Thailand

September 17, 2014 - by Mishari Muqbil and Arthit Suriyawongkul.

Thailand is presently going through a period of upheaval with the population split between two strong ideologies and those in power playing a zero sum game. Surveillance of the internet and other communication mediums has in the last decade been shown to have progressively greater importance to those in power. The major application for mass surveillance has been in the form of logging internet use and blocking websites, but there have also been cases where law enforcement has requested cooperation from companies such as the social network company LINE in order to acquire chat transcripts to help them prosecute (non­political) criminal cases. However, recently, with the military takeover of the caretaker civilian government on 22 May 2014, surveillance has taken a more totalitarian form.

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While Australia shirks its international obligations, Australians wait on the rest of the world to act

September 19, 2014 - by Angela Daly and Angus Murray.

One of the most important treaties of international human rights law is the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) which has been signed and ratified by most of the world’s countries. Although all of these countries have signed and ratified the ICCPR, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the United Kingdom and the United States have exhibited blatant disregard for the rights contained therein by forming the Five Eyes (FVEY) coalition of countries which engage in mass surveillance of their populations. The ‘above the law’ existence of FVEY was only brought to the public’s attention as a result of Edward Snowden’s leaked documents, and was revealed to be fundamentally at odds with international human rights principles.

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WITNESS Endorses International Principles on Human Rights & Surveillance

August 22, 2013 - by Ben Doernberg, Witness.

After months of international outcry over the internet surveillance programs carried out by the NSA and other Western governments, President Obama called a press conference on Friday, August 9th. He explained that moving forward, the U.S. would address criticisms of the NSA’s programs through debate “guided by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, with reverence for our history as a nation that honors its agreements, and with respect for the facts.” Or at least, that’s what he could have said to solidify the role of the United States as a defender of Internet freedom and begin to turn back from a world without privacy.

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XKeyscore: Instrument of Mass Surveillance

July 31, 2013 - by Stephen Lendman.

Over 100 organizations endorsed 13 protect human rights principles. Doing so challenges lawless spying. They advise “on how surveillance laws should respect the law, due process, and include public oversight and transparency.”

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Your vote against mass surveillance

December 15, 2013 - by SHARE Conference.

SHARE invites citizens of the Internet to give their voice against the mass surveillance and to sign The 13 Necessary and Proportionate Principles.

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¿Vigilancia de Estado? Sí, pero garantizando derechos

September 11, 2013 - by Pilar Sáenz.

Como en cualquier caso donde se involucran personas y sus derechos, debe existir balance entre lo que se permite y lo que no. Para la autorización de procesos de vigilancia existen límites y controles que son los que en el entorno digital están fallando en forma especial. Con esta idea en mente, casi 250 organizaciones y colectivos de la sociedad civil, incluido RedPaTodos*, hemos firmado los Principios Internacionales sobre la Aplicación de los Derechos Humanos a la Vigilancia de las Comunicaciones. Una declaración que trata de aclarar en qué casos y de qué forma puede darse la vigilancia estatal para que no vaya en contravía de los derechos humanos.

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“Exigimos el fin de la vigilancia masiva”: ContingenteMX

January 6, 2014 - by Homozapping (Spanish).

Uno de los principales sucesos noticiosos del año pasado fue, sin duda, las revelaciones de Edward Snowden en torno a los distintos programas de espionaje que el gobierno de Estados Unidos tiene en marcha.

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“India’s Surveillance State” – Our Report On Communications Surveillance in India

September 3, 2014 - by SFLC.in. The report delves into communications surveillance in India and takes an in­depth look at various aspects of India’s surveillance machinery, including enabling provisions of law, service provider obligations, and known mechanisms. It examines compliance of India’s legal provisions on surveillance with the International Principles on the Application of Human Rights to Communications Surveillance that were formulated after a global consultation with civil society groups, industry, and international experts in communications surveillance law, policy, and technology.

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“Your software is my biology”: The mass surveillance system in Argentina

September 15, 2014 - by Flavia Fascendini and Florencia Roveri.

In 2011 Argentine President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner created, through an executive decree, a federal biometric system for the identification of citizens, named SIBIOS (Sistemaz Federal de Identificación Biométrica para la Seguridad). It was developed, according to the decree, to provide a centralised system of information regarding individual biometrics registers. This would be used for appropriate testing when identifying people and faces, optimising the investigation of crimes and supporting national security. The adoption of this measure involved very little – almost no – public discussion, except for a few civil society organisations that warned the government about the risks involved in these kinds of surveillance methods, and their implications for people’s right to privacy.

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