Millions in crisis rely on ubiquitous tools that betray them: from social media to Starlink. The deeper shock is when secure tools also exclude them through everyday hurdles like phone verification. In order to have real alternatives, we must reclaim hyper-accessibility. 🔐

During the Iran-Israel war, civilians in Iran had little access to trustworthy information. AI deepfakes circulated online exacerbated this situation. What are the implications? @mahsaalimardani.bsky.social and @samgregory.bsky.social explained:

🆕| There is a growing gap between the sophistication of AI deception and analysts’ ability to detect it, heralding a frightening new phase in global conflict. @mahsaalimardani.bsky.social & @samgregory.bsky.social's latest for @carnegieendowment.org⤵️

I can't emphasize enough how crucial accurate information is when you live anywhere in the margins. This is true in wartime Iran, & it's true under militarized policing and white supremacist kyriarchy in the U.S. Thank you @mahsaalimardani.bsky.social for all of your lifesaving work.

Read this piece where we explore the serious implications of synthetic media in conflict -especially when it begins to further destabilise an already fragile information ecosystem like Iran’s, amid wartime conditions where access to truth can mean the difference between life and death.

The Iran-Israel war signals a major gap between the sophistication of AI deception and analysts’ ability to detect it. @mahsaalimardani.bsky.social & @samgregory.bsky.social explain how the info war is changing and its consequences @carnegieendowment.org ⬇️ carnegieendowment.org/research/202...

Glad to collaborate with @mahsaalimardani.bsky.social on this exploration of AI war propaganda in the Israel-Iran war and the gaps growing in our capability to detect and respond carnegieendowment.org/research/202...

I spoke with people in Gaza who've been accused of being scammers or even AI.

NO. AI. FOR. WAR. CRIMES!!!

Baratunde is spot on. He highlights three things from the episode we did: (1) Reality is not sustainable if it always has to be proven. (2) A solution that doesn’t work for everyone is not a solution. (3) We need a food safety system for information newsletter.lifewithmachines.media/p/reality-on...

Turkish authorities have escalated their crackdown on free expression & social media companies are complying with arbitrary requests. On May 8 X blocked access to the account of jailed Istanbul Mayor İmamoğlu Social media companies should resist Turkish state censorship www.hrw.org/news/2025/05...

So much to unpack here, where does one start? www.axios.com/2025/05/07/o...

Wild (and grim) to see Grok itself admit it can generate nearly-nude images of real people w/out consent as a harm needing re-examination. Grok: “Highlights a gap in our safeguards... violating our ethical standards on consent and privacy.” 🔗 www.404media.co/elon-musks-g...

🚨Cool job alert🚨 There is an exciting opportunity at WITNESS to join as the Program Manager for the Middle East and North Africa program! Deadline is May 4th! witness.bamboohr.com/careers/62

Our latest: Anyone who has ever been a part of a decentered group and dealt directly with criminalization understands these tactics. It is important that we do not overstate these powers in our collective imagination. Instead, we can study their mechanics. 🔐

As immigration controls are violently targeting pro #Palestine students & other migrants, their low-tech tactics remain the most dangerous & authoritarian, Afsaneh Rigot writes.“The oppressed know the oppressor better than it knows itself.” We can outsmart them. the-decenter.ghost.io/dehumanized-...

WITNESS analysis of the EU AI Act's draft GPAI Code of Practice (CoP) flags urgent concerns. One point -we need stronger Output Transparency requirements to ensure information integrity. 1/3

On Trans Day of Visibility — and every day — we stand in solidarity with the leadership of trans communities around the world. Their genius has given birth to many important harm reduction methods in tech.

ICE has arrested Iranian national Alireza Doroudi, a doctoral candidate studying mechanical engineering at the University of Alabama. He was arrested at home at 5 a.m. Tuesday. As with some of the others who've been disappeared, unclear why he was detained. www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news...

Our official statement from Albert Sellars LLP on President Trump's recent executive order.

BREAKING: People are being suspended on X in Turkey for posting videos of these protests against Erdoğan’s corrupt and repressive regime. Keep sharing everywhere.

Excellent entry-point for those study tech harms to understand potential harms from the growth of content authenticity and provenance standards in their particular contexts -from information environments like China, Iran or the US. By @jacobocas.bsky.social blog.witness.org/2025/03/tomo...

For the past month I have transitioned into a new role as Associate Director of Technology, Threats and Opportunities at WITNESS. I'm joining one of the most cutting-edge and talented technology and human rights teams around -a privilege I don't take lightly! www.witness.org/portfolio_pa...

Some hope for justice accountability during a profoundly dark time.

The notion that a human rights-centered approach hinders progress is a dangerous fallacy. For too long, “innovation” has been used as an excuse to sideline trust, safety, and user rights, writes shirin anlen.

Current situation in Sudan continues to be catastrophic. The #queer community in #Sudan face multi-layer harms. A dedication from one of the Sudanese researchers from our 2024 report found here: www.article19.org/queer-resist...

Close out this inaugural week in the US with our newsletter "It can be hard to imagine what can be done in the face of this tsunami. But we must remember that tech harms are not new — even the current ones — they are just more overt and likely to expand. Read in full here: lnkd.in/eNT3uKQ8

“We find that fact-checks are successful in debunking misperceptions. Moreover, this debunking effect is consistent across countries” Posting this key finding from our recent 16 country study. For no particular reason today. doi.org/10.1080/1520...

This week Saudi Arabia hosts the IGF while dozens of people remain imprisoned for peaceful online speech. Many are charged under the country’s abusive counterterrorism law, and the authorities conduct invasive surveillance of civil society members. www.hrw.org/news/2024/12...

OpenAI’s #Sora and #Ai tech like it represent a step change in generative video. For @techpolicypress.bsky.social I highlight key risks and fundamental inequitable gaps in access to detection tools. But ... there is time to address this and other threats www.techpolicy.press/openais-sora...

Are you working on #FreedomOfExpression and #MediaFreedom worldwide? Follow this list 👇: go.bsky.app/HcUHTsF

My tears roll and my heart tightens as I see the photos of the funeral of Syrian former political prisoner Mazen al-Hamada as he is honored after his death. When alive, he told his story hundreds of times, yet the international community looked away.

This thread 👇

"We explained that the range of legitimate interests of parties interested in increased transparency of data used in the development of GPAI models...encompasses privacy and data protection rights...fair competition, and consumer rights"

What you said happened ya Bassel, after 13 years (-8 days). God bless your soul as one of the heroes to he remembered during this time.

The extermination of prisoners at Saydnaya was mass slaughter on an industrial scale. The machines used, the discarded clothes… It’s hard not to look at the footage coming out and not think of the Holocaust. Bashar al-Assad must pay for this.

Someone postponed one of my meetings until 2025 today. Reason: they are travelling to Damascus to reunite with their family after more than a decade. My heart is so full of joy. I hope many more of us will send similar emails one day.

Tears of happiness for Syria, Syrians and all who fight for freedom against oppression. May Assad be the first of many more dictators to fall. 💚

Prisoners liberated from Sweida prison today One has been their 8 years. Another says "Syria is ours, not for Russians or Iranians" ... on to Sednaya!

Deraa - the city where the revolution started ...

🚨Freedom of expression is not a luxury but a necessity for civilians trapped amidst extreme violence. Find out how FoE is protected during conflict in our new report: Clearing the Fog of War. www.article19.org/free-express...

My latest collaboration with the NYT is finally out! (it’s been months in the making) www.nytimes.com/interactive/...

Cybercrime laws across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region are being weaponized to stifle dissent + crush freedoms – going beyond combating real crimes. The new @UN Cybercrime treaty could legitimize these abuses. www.accessnow.org/arab-region-...

Did you see the WaPo editorial board’s deeply flawed piece the other day that said the International Criminal Court cannot prosecute democratically elected leaders? I sure did. So I wrote my first ever letter to the editor.

At the UN Business & Human Rights Forum, now starting a 2-day consultation by the UN Human Rights B-Tech project. Tomorrow, I’m looking forward to contributing to the session on "Human Rights Due Diligence for AI," presenting our @article19.bsky.social research on vulnerable communities in tech.

Bits of a BBC interview on the issuance of ICC arrest warrants in the situation of Palestine. Since Israel decided to take out the Hamas suspects on the prosecutor’s list through kinetic means (with Deif still there just in name at this point) I focused on the impact for Netanyahu and Gallant.

Predicting reoccurring Q: How can they issue a warrant for Netanyahu before Khamenei? Answer: ICC has jurisdiction over crimes in Palestine which is ICC member. ICC cannot investigate/prosecute Iranian leaders without UNSC referral or Iran voluntarily accepting court’s jurisdiction. Both unlikely.