Surveillance: journalists worldwide call for stronger action on spyware abuse
International Federation of Journalists to lead lobbying
Hundreds of journalists from across the globe have endorsed a call for the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) to lead lobbying efforts to tackle the abuse of spyware and unlawful surveillance in order to defend media freedom.
The call was unanimously backed by delegates at the IFJ’s Congress in Paris, which included NUJ assistant general secretary Seamus Dooley, and followed the publication of a ground-breaking report on the impact of growing and abusive surveillance on sources, journalists and independent media.
Called Global Surveillance of Journalists: A Technical Mapping of Tools, Tactics, and Threats , the EU-funded research study by Samar Al Halal is part of the Brave Media project and covers the dangers posed to investigative journalism by unregulated and unlawful surveillance.
Al Halal called for stronger laws and more training and told delegates that “when journalists are monitored, self-censorship becomes normal...even the perception of being monitored is enough to change behaviour. In more dangerous contexts, particularly in conflict zones, surveillance data can contribute to increased physical risks for those seeking to hold power to account”.
During a panel discussion on strategies to fight surveillance, she also highlighted that the threat was not just technical but also political, pointing to, “how technology is being used in ways that directly undermine press freedom and democratic accountability”.
Meanwhile Dooley, along with Samir de Casto from the Brazilian journalists union Federação National dos Jornalistas (FENAJ), highlighted how abuses in their regions had threatened media freedom. They also explained also how journalists’ unions, using the law and public campaigns, had been able to win justice for those unlawfully targeted and expose those seeking to undermine media freedom.
Congress delegates called on the IFJ to lead a campaign to secure:
- Stronger regulation of the spyware industry
- Greater transparency in spyware exports and government procurement
- Enhanced accountability for telecom providers
- Safeguarding of rights to encryption and anonymity
- Greater investment in regional forensic capacity
- Enhancing safety training in journalism education
IFJ General Secretary Anthony Bellanger said:
“From delegates across the world we have heard similar stories of abusive, unlawful and unregulated spying on journalists and their sources which threatens media freedom and leads to greater self-censorship and in too many cases physical threats and attacks. It is time governments, telecoms companies and regulators acted to protect media freedom.
"The IFJ gives notice that we will be working as a matter of priority to expose unlawful surveillance, provide journalists with the tools to understand the threat and protect themselves and launch global and national advocacy campaigns to demand stronger laws and regulation to protect journalists and journalism."