Privacy

Twenty years into the social media revolution, of which Facebook is the poster child, we need to reassess and renew our fundamental democratic principles.

NSO-Israel Police affair proves we need to rethink the way we oversee surveillance technologies. The solution: Israel needs a privacy czar

Recent media reports alleging that the police are using controversial surveillance software to spy on Israeli citizens has troubling implications and the current Protection of Privacy Law is not equipped to cope with today’s reality. Israel badly needs new legislation that is up to the challenges of the information age.

Electronic bracelets should be used only after restricting access to information and ensuring its security

IDI's Dr. Tehilla Shwartz speaks with Amanda Borschel-Dan on a Times of Israel podcast about the resurgence of COVID-19 cases and how Israel's government is tracking them.

The fast-moving escalation in the conflict between President Trump and Twitter in the last week of May may prove in hindsight to be a watershed development for the legal architecture of online social media.

ISA's tracking of civilians is being discussed in the Knesset Subcommittee for Secret Services. As Israel is beginning to emerge from a state of emergency, less invasive alternatives should be adopted.

Information is power. Governments and private entities that have access to vast troves of information have vast power.

IDI Expert Dr. Tehilla Shwartz Altshuler: "Now is the time for the appropriate regulatory authorities to act and protect the privacy of Zoom's users."

Israel has authorized its secret services to carry out extensive surveillance of civilians in the battle against the Coronavirus. In most other democracies there is dedicated legislation to deal with information gathering during the epidemic. IDI's experts complied a comparative review.

How is the coronavirus pandemic changing the way governments track their citizens? IDI expert takes a look around the world to see what policies countries are implementing.

We must take advantage of the technological tools at our disposal to battle the coronavirus - without forfeiting our right to privacy

Even a life-saving measure must be weighed against the threat it poses to democracy -- we do it all the time

The new regulations that allow the ISA to track citizens threatens our right to privacy, and set a dangerous precedent that could remain with us long after the COVID-19 crisis comes to an end

The sharing of medical data has extremely positive potential. It can help with predicting rare diseases, early detection and more exact diagnoses than are possible with existing medical capabilities.

They are everywhere, argued the PM after pushing to install them in polling stations. He's right, and that's exactly the problem

Technological progress has created a situation of severe tension and incompatibility between the right to privacy and the extensive data pooling on which the digital economy is based. This development requires new thinking about the substance of that right.

"Israel and other Western Democracies must carefully consider the negative ramifications of excelling in technology while disregarding moral and ethical questions." Read Dr. Tehilla Shwartz Altshuler's latest in Techcrunch

In an op-ed published in Techcrunch, Dr. Shwartz Altshuler analyzes the dangers of exploiting one of Israel's rare assets - an extraordinary volume of computerized healthcare information, and the potential damage it could cause.

We would not be global leaders in cyber and technology without simultaneously protecting fundamental human rights.

Black Friday is a good reminder that that in order to protect our privacy as well as minimize the use of personal data to influence our ability to make free choices, there needs to be a change in consumers’ habits as well as increased digital literacy. 

Does the law allow the use of spyware against any citizen, and who oversees the process? Is there any way of knowing if we are being followed? IDI experts explain

The public should protest the violation of its privacy - so that regulations can be put into place to protect everyone

Privacy doesn't have to be sacrificed in order to protect citizens from the coronavirus - it too must be protected