De opstanden in Syrië en Libië laten zien: digitale veiligheid even belangrijk voor journalistiek als goede aantekeningen maken

Wanneer je verslag doet vanuit oorlogsgebieden is het belangrijk om naast jezelf ook je bronnen te beschermen. Syrië is daar een goed voorbeeld van, activisten en opstandelingen worden door het regime gezocht waardoor hun bescherming – hun anonimiteit – van levensbelang is.

In Columbia Journalism Review bespreekt Matthieu Aikins in het mei/juni nummer het geval van de Britse journalist en filmmaker Sean McAllister. Hij ging undercover naar Syrië en interviewde activist en computer-expert ‘Kardokh’ in Damascus op camera. De Syriër was achteraf bezorgd dat McAllister misschien niet helemaal het gevaar dat hij liep begreep en de manier waarop de Syrische autoriteiten jacht maken op activisten.

But some of McAllister’s practices made him uneasy, Kardokh said. He worried that the filmmaker didn’t realize how aggressive and pervasive the regime’s surveillance was. Kardokh and his fellow activists took elaborate measures with their digital security, encrypting their communications and using special software to hide their identities online. “I started to feel that Sean was careless,” Kardokh told me. He said he had urged McAllister to take more precautions in his communications and to encrypt his footage. “He was using his mobile and SMS, without any protections.

En toen gebeurde dat wat Kardokh vreesde, McAllistar werd gearresteerd, zijn materiaal in beslag genomen en de Brit werd ondervraagd door de veiligheidsdienst. Kardokh deed zijn telefoon uit, pakte zijn spullen en vluchtte.

The Syrians had interrogated McAllister about his activities, and seized his laptop, mobile phone, camera, and footage. All of McAllister’s research was now at the disposal of Syrian intelligence. When Kardokh heard that McAllister had been arrested, he didn’t hesitate—he turned off his mobile phone, packed his bag, and fled Damascus, staying with relatives in a nearby town before escaping to Lebanon. He said that other activists who had been in touch with McAllister fled the country as well, and several of those who didn’t were arrested. “I was happy that I hadn’t put him in contact with more people,” Kardokh said.

Rami Jarah, a Syrian activist based in Cairo, said that he tried to help another activist, known as Omar al-Baroudi, get out of the country after McAllister’s arrest. “He was terrified,” Jarrah said. “His face was in those videos. He said that his number was on Sean’s phone.” The next day, Baroudi disappeared, and Jarah said that he has not been heard from since.

Hoewel journalisten kunnen denken dat ze goed met hun tijd meegaan door gebruik te maken van social media en nieuwe technologiën, lopen zij hopeloos achter met de methodes die autoriteiten gebruiken voor hun inlichtingen. Bijvoorbeeld de manieren om achter IP-adressen te komen, vast te leggen welke sites burgers bezoeken, locaties van telefoons te achterhalen en om Skype-gesprekken af te luisteren. Aikins komt met een voorbeeld uit Libië:

One of the sources, Marwan Arebi, was in charge of information technology at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and had access to Libyan intelligence correspondence. He says hackers working for the regime had been able to access the accounts of foreign journalists using simple techniques, such as embedding a so-called Trojan-horse virus in a video ostensibly about human-rights violations in Tripoli, and then sending it to reporters. When the reporters opened the video file, spyware would be installed, allowing Qaddafi’s spies to access their computers remotely. Arebi said he was given access to the e-mail accounts of journalists working at CNN and other media organizations. “The problem wasn’t the sophistication of the tools, but rather the lack of knowledge of the reporters,” he said. “I think many sources who were speaking to these correspondents have been captured or killed.”

Het is dus een zaak voor de journalistiek om zich bewust te worden van de technologische vooruitgang en zich te wapenen tegen technologie die hen of hun bronnen kan compromitteren, zeker in een oorlogsgebied. Of zoals Aikins het stelt: “digitale veiligheid is een fundamenteel aspect van ons werk, zo basaal en essentieel als het maken van goede aantekeningen.”

Lees voor meer informatie over digitale veiligheid voor journalisten deze artikelen:

• Campaign Targeting Syrian Activists Escalates with New Surveillance Malware
• Staying Safe: CPJ’s “Journalist Security Guide” is a must-read
• Kill the Messenger – What Russia taught Syria: When you destroy a city, make sure no one — not even the story — gets out alive
• U.S. Firm Acknowledges Syria Uses Its Gear to Block Web
• What Can I Do To Protect Myself?
• Encryption is your friend
• Fake Skype Encryption Tool Targeted at Syrian Activists Promises Security, Delivers Spyware