In a report published on July 10th 2024, Amnesty International has claimed that social media apps and various technology systems perpetuate and reinforce gender inequalities and entrenching racial and socio-economic power structures.
The briefing titled “Gender and Human Rights in the Digital Age” highlighted the unregulated data collection and processing of large amount of personal data by the social media and technology apps often perpetuate mass surveillance and discrimination against women, LGBTQI+ individuals among other marginalised groups.
The report claimed:
“Marginalised groups, including women and LGBTI people, face threats to their human rights due to extensive and improper data collection practices that do not reflect their individual realities. This under-regulated accumulation and processing of vast amounts of data not only constitutes harmful mass surveillance but also entrenches discrimination against women and LGBTI people [..] Governments justify such data grab tactics as a cost-saving solution to roll-out automated systems in the public sector for benefit payments, while Big Tech companies hoard and deploy personal user data for their lucrative surveillance-based business models.”
According to the briefing, the unchecked implementation of digital ID system and algorithms in social benefits systems has exacerbated the existing global gendered “digital divide,” restricting access to technology for some groups due to historical inequality.
An example of this phenomenon is happening in Pakistan where suspension of ‘X’ gender category in the national identity card has rather left significant number of people who identify themselves within the LGBTQI+ categories, completely devoid of access to their fundamental rights such as healthcare access.
The brief also highlights barriers to accessing information on sexual and reproductive health, rights, and services, such as abortion, particularly for women and LGBTI people. Limiting access to health information constitutes a violation of the right to health, as seen in the United States, where “abortion rights activists and organisations have reported removals of abortion-related content on Meta and TikTok, effectively preventing people from accessing life-saving information”.
The briefing claims that targeted digital surveillance through spyware has also been used to target women and LGBTI activists, constituting tech-facilitated gender-based violence (TfGBV).
“It is vital that governments and private actors take an explicitly gender inclusive approach to regulating technologies and addressing its harms. If these systems perpetuate discrimination and inequality for women and LGBTI people, then they should not be deployed,” said Imogen Richmond-Bishop, technology & economic, social and cultural rights researcher at Amnesty International.
