By Natalie Brown

Copyright news

In August, it was reported that in late 2021, Israel’s military surveillance agency, Unit 8200, was granted access to a “customised and segregated” area within the tech giant’s Azure cloud platform.

This was used by Unit 8200 “for the storage of data files of phone calls obtained through broad or mass surveillance of civilians in Gaza and the West Bank”.

Following a more than two-month investigation into the allegations — reported in The Guardian — Microsoft Vice Chair and President Brad Smith told employees in a message posted online: “We have found evidence that supports elements of The Guardian’s reporting.”

“I want to let you know that Microsoft has ceased and disabled a set of services to a unit within the Israel Ministry of Defence (IMOD),” the message read.

“We have reviewed The Guardian’s allegations based on two principles, both grounded in Microsoft’s longstanding protection of privacy as a fundamental right … First, we do not provide technology to facilitate mass surveillance of citizens. We have applied this principle in every country around the world, and we have insisted on it repeatedly for more than two decades. This is why we explained publicly on August 15 that Microsoft’s standard terms of service prohibit the use of our technology for mass surveillance of civilians.

“Second, we respect and protect the privacy rights of our customers. This means, among other things, that we do not access our customers’ content in this type of investigation.”

Microsoft reviewed the decision with the IMOD along with steps the tech firm is taking to ensure compliance, “focused on ensuring our services are not used for mass surveillance of civilians”, Mr Smith said.

“This does not impact the important work that Microsoft continues to do to protect the cybersecurity of Israel and other countries in the Middle East, including under the Abraham Accords,” he continued, noting that the company’s review is ongoing.

“Microsoft will continue to be a company guided by principles and ethics. We will hold every decision, statement, and action to this standard. This is non-negotiable.”

An Israeli security official said Microsoft’s decision has caused “no damage to the operational capabilities of the IDF”.

The move is the first known case of a US technology company removing or disabling its services to the IDF since its war on Gaza began in October 2023.

Past reporting by The New York Times has revealed the vast technology infrastructure established by Israel to surveil Palestinians in the West Bank – monitoring phone calls, text messages and social media and using the information for military raids and air strikes.

Google, Amazon and Oracle are among the companies whose services Israel relies upon.

Amnesty International researcher Matt Mahmoudi, who has investigated Israel’s use of technology in the surveillance of Palestinians, told The Times he welcomed Microsoft’s decision.

“Microsoft’s conduct should serve as a wake-up call to other companies supplying cloud infrastructure, AI and surveillance products to Israel,” he said.