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Being the target

Human rights defenders are continuously at risk of violence, intimidation and surveillance as a direct consequence of the work they do, with women or those opposing large corporations bearing the brunt of these forms of repression.

Privacy International spoke to four activists based in Colombia, Indonesia, Mexico and South Africa to learn more about their understanding and experiences of surveillance. Their testimonies illustrate how the promises that came with innovation and the use of new technologies have not been enjoyed by all equally, and how some groups in society - such as human rights defenders - have experienced the impact of surveillance and the exploitation of data by governments and companies more severely than others.

Below is an outline of the main issues that these four activists brought to our attention which reflect the concerns raised previously by other organisations and HRDs across the world.

UK Law Enforcement Data Service (LEDS): the new police mega-database

The Home Office is currently developing a UK-wide police 'super-database' containing a vast amount of data, which mixes both evidential and intelligence material. Here is why PI is concerned about LEDS and what we are doing about it.

Police unlocking your data in the cloud

Our data stored in the cloud is increasingly sought after by law enforcement agencies. Increasingly, it is obtained using ‘cloud extraction technologies’.

Challenging the Drivers of Surveillance

Powerful countries encourage and enable other governments to deploy advanced surveillance capabilities without adequate safeguards.

IoT in Court

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. 

Neighbourhood Watched

From facial recognition to social media monitoring, from remote hacking to the use of mobile surveillance equipment called 'IMSI catchers', UK police forces are using an ever-expanding array of surveillance tools to spy on us as we go about our everyday lives.

State Sponsors of Surveillance: The Governments Helping Others Spy

Powerful governments are financing, training and equipping countries — including authoritarian regimes — with surveillance capabilities.
 

Phone Data Extraction: digital stop and search

The use of ‘mobile phone extraction’ tools enables police forces to download all of the content and data from people’s phones. This can apply to suspects, witnesses and even victims – without their knowledge.