Published 26/09/2025 15:48 | Edited 26/09/2025 16:49
Microsoft announced, on Thursday (25), the cancellation of contracts to use its technology by the Ministry of Defense of Israel (IMOD, Israeli Ministry of Defense). The initiative happens after the British newspaper The Guardian reveal that the company’s software was used for monitoring and surveillance of Palestinians, that is, it was contributing to genocide.
Microsoft President Brad Smith, in a public statement to employees, stressed that the company confirmed the newspaper notes and, therefore, “disabled a set of services to a unit of the Israeli Ministry of Defense.”
According to the newspaper, Israel’s defense forces (IDF) use Microsoft Azure to store data from telephone calls from Palestinian civilians, Gaza and West Bank. Therefore, mass surveillance had the help of the software of the big tech American, which offers computing services, cloud storage, analysis and artificial intelligence.
According to Smith, the company does not provide “technology to facilitate mass surveillance of civilians.” Nevertheless, he stressed that he respects the data and privacy of customers, exempting the company to have access to what Israel was keeping.
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As explained, the decision was made based on evidence “related to Azure’s storage capacity consumption by the Ministry of Defense of Israel in the Netherlands and the use of AI (Artificial Intelligence) services.”
At the end of the text, the company’s president said he informed the ministry about the decision and that the measures focus on ensuring that services are not used for mass monitoring, which violates the company’s principles.
“For English See”
Despite the posture, there is a disbelief about this backward attitude of Microsoft. The company only reacted after the wide negative repercussion brought by the English media. To top it off, a report from the United Nations (UN) has pointed out the company as a collaborator of the Israeli regime since the 1990s.
“Microsoft has been operating in Israel since 1991, developing its largest center outside of the United States. Their technologies are inserted in the prison service, the police, at universities and schools – including colonies. Microsoft integrates its systems and technology Civilians in the Israeli Armed Forces since 2003, in addition to acquiring Israeli Startups for Cybercinical Security and Surveillance”, Knee A.
Thus, the current initiative is not enough to demonstrate that the company really does not know anything about the use of its technology for genocidal actions. Just as, even if these specific technologies have been disabled, nothing prevents others from working.
As highlighted by The GuardianAzure has the ability to collect 1 million telephone calls per hour. In addition, Israel may have used software as a weapon of war by preparing air attacks and military actions against Palestinians.
Source: vermelho.org.br
