Government hacking in Mexico and its international human rights law implications
14 September 6pm-8pm
Free Word Centre, London
ARTICLE 19, Privacy International and R3D invite you to join a discussion on government hacking in Mexico and the international human rights implications of government hacking for surveillance.
In June 2017, reporting revealed that the Mexican government had used hacking tools to target journalists and human rights defenders working to expose government corruption and human rights abuses. These attacks were designed to compromise the mobile phones of targeted individuals, permitting the attackers to surreptitiously turn on cameras and microphones, record calls, read messages, and track messages. The Mexican NGOs R3D and ARTICLE 19 Mexico worked on the ground to help gather the evidence leading to the exposure of the Mexican government’s role in these attacks.
A growing number of governments around the world, including the UK, are embracing hacking to facilitate their surveillance activities. Although often promoted as an essential surveillance technique, hacking can present unique and grave threats to our privacy and security. But to date, there has been insufficient public debate about the scope and nature of these powers and their privacy and security implications. Privacy International has been working to bring transparency and accountability to government hacking for surveillance, including by formulating a set of recommendations aimed at helping stakeholders evaluate government hacking in light of applicable international human rights law.
Please note: Drinks from 6pm. Event begins at 6.30pm.