Multiple human rights groups published a letter to Microsoft on Friday in which they demanded a suspension of business with the Israeli military and government, alleging that Microsoft technology abets human rights abuses. The letter was sent to Microsoft in September but was only released to the public on Friday.
The letter, which was sent by six rights groups including Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International, and Access Now, stated:
Israeli authorities have used the mass surveillance and coercive extraction of Palestinians’ personal data to enable, facilitate, and even accelerate the commission of other international crimes, including genocide; crimes against humanity, including of extermination; and war crimes, including air strikes carried out in violation of the laws of war.
The groups cited an investigation by The Guardian, Local Call, and +972 Magazine that reported that the Israeli military’s Unit 8200 uses Microsoft Azure to collect, record, and store millions of mobile phone calls by Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank. The investigation found that using the storage power of Azure’s cloud-based storage, Unit 8200 has been able to conduct lethal airstrikes and shape strategy in those regions.
The rights groups further stated that Israeli authorities have reportedly used this system to intercept the conversations of ordinary citizens, mining them for information to then violate Palestinians’ human rights. Human Rights Watch stated, for instance, that Israeli authorities have reportedly used the information to “blackmail people, place them in detention, or even justify their killing after the fact.”
In response to the investigation, Microsoft announced that it had disabled Israel Ministry of Defense subscriptions, saying the company had disabled “specific cloud storage and (Artificial Intelligence) services and technologies” and was working to “ensur[e] our services are not used for mass surveillance of civilians.”
A Microsoft spokesperson stated, “At no time during this engagement … has Microsoft been aware of the surveillance of civilians or collection of their cellphone conversations using Microsoft’s services, including through the external review it commissioned.” Microsoft said that it had “no information” about the kind of data stored by Unit 8200 in its cloud. The company has also reportedly insisted that its systems not be used to identify targets for lethal strikes.
Deborah Brown, technology and rights deputy director at Human Rights Watch, said:
Microsoft has taken an important first step toward restricting the use of specific technologies by a unit within the Israeli military for repressing Palestinians. It should comprehensively review its business relationships with Israeli authorities and take action to ensure that its … tools and services are not complicit in Israel’s extermination of Palestinians and other serious abuses.
The letter from the human rights groups concluded with seven questions requesting additional investigations and steps by Microsoft, with answers expected by October 10. Microsoft said that it intends to reply at the end of the month.
