SMEX has decided to organize the annual digital rights event in the MENA region Bread&Net 2020 online. While we won’t be hosting an in-person gathering as usual, we look forward to once again bringing the community together with an engaging and dynamic online experience that addresses the most pressing digital[...]
Jawaker, a mobile application that witnessed an increase in popularity during the COVID-19 crisis period, has many privacy and security issues. Based out of the United Arab Emirates, Jawaker provides popular card games, like 400, Leekha, and Tarneeb. It also provides many in-game chat features between users, and gives them[...]
The safety of the digital rights community is always our first priority. That’s why, with so much uncertainty about the trajectory of Covid-19, we’ve decided that Bread&Net 2020 will be held virtually. While we won’t be hosting an in-person gathering, we look forward to once again bringing the community together[...]
On April 30, 2020, The Lebanese General Prosecutor ordered the Ministry of Telecommunications to compel all internet service providers to block 28 applications, claiming that these applications were spreading false information about the “unofficial” exchange rate between the dollar (USD) and the Lebanese Lira (L.L). We condemn the General Prosecutor’s[...]
With the continuing crises that Lebanon and the world are facing, we at SMEX have sought ways in which free knowledge, which is an integral part of the ecosystem of digital rights, can contribute to addressing the emerging problems. Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, SMEX has invested in[...]
This article appeared first on MIT Enterprise Forum Pan Arab Region . “It was my mistake and I am sorry.” This is what Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg told the US Congress back in 2018 when asked about the data misuse by Cambridge Analytica to publish targeted political ads to Facebook users[...]
Surveillance cameras are spread in the Lebanese capital, Beirut, with unparalleled chaos. While the responsibility of who manages the data produced by those cameras is unclear, an even bigger question is, what purpose do they serve? The Municipality of Beirut operates more than two thousand public cameras, which record videos[...]
SMEX has developed a hotline to mitigate new threats to digital civic space in Lebanon. We provide technical advice and assistance to civil society groups, activists, lawyers, journalists, vulnerable groups, and human rights defenders in order to improve their digital security practices to stay safe online. SMEX is recruiting Digital[...]
As the Covid-19 virus continues to spread across the world, governments are adopting surveillance measures to track patients, raising privacy concerns. Lebanon, like many other countries, has launched digital tools to help diagnose and monitor the spread of the outbreak. The tools launched by the Lebanese Ministry of Public Health[...]
During Bread&Net 2019, the MENA Digital Threats and Controls session discussed the most prevalent types of digital threats and patterns in the region. Additionally, experts also explored the basic digital security controls that users can adopt to protect their digital existence. Ali Sibai, technologist and Rapid Response Network coordinator revealed[...]
