Microsoft probes links with Israel Defense Forces following disclosure of extensive surveillance operation
In a joint investigation by The Guardian, +972 Magazine, and Hebrew-language outlet Local Call, details have emerged about the activities of Israel's military intelligence Unit 8200 and its collaboration with technology giant Microsoft.
The partnership, initiated after a 2021 meeting between Unit 8200 commander Yossi Sariel and Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella, aimed to facilitate surveillance and military operations against Palestinians. Microsoft developed and hosted a customized version of its Azure cloud platform to store and analyze a massive trove of Palestinian private communications, including audio files from millions of intercepted phone calls, amounting to approximately 11,500 terabytes or 200 million hours of phone conversations.
Microsoft engineers, some of whom are Unit 8200 alumni, helped build secure “encrypted security layers” around the data to protect it and enable Israeli military intelligence to act on the information. The company also provided AI tools to enhance Israeli targeting capabilities, such as a system called “noisy message” that flags suspicious written content for predictive arrests and operations.
Concerns have been raised over the lack of transparency and the ethics of enabling mass surveillance and potential human rights abuses through this concealed relationship. Microsoft has ordered an external review into the allegations regarding the use of its platform by Unit 8200 to store and exploit Palestinian communications.
Senior executives from Microsoft are reportedly assessing the nature of information held by Unit 8200 on their servers. There are concerns that Israeli staffers working at Microsoft's facility in Israel may have concealed details about the nature of the sensitive military collaboration from upper management.
Microsoft employs a significant number of Unit 8200 veterans, reflecting a broader pattern of Israeli military intelligence influence within the tech sector. This close overlap between military intelligence expertise and big tech companies has heightened concerns over surveillance and counterintelligence risks in the U.S. and globally.
The Israeli military intelligence unit in question is Unit 8200, which is comparable to the National Security Agency in the U.S. The senior executives are questioning whether Israeli employees may have felt more bound by their national loyalties than to Microsoft, causing them to conceal key information on behalf of the military.
Microsoft's leadership is concerned that Israel-based staff may have concealed key details about their relationship with Unit 8200 and the surveillance operation using data stored on Azure. The former head of Unit 8200 resigned in the wake of the Hamas attack of Oct. 7, 2023. The Guardian has identified several of Microsoft's Israel-based employees who were involved in managing projects with Unit 8200. All had previously posted online that they had served in, or were reservists for, the elite unit.
In May, Microsoft claimed there was "no evidence to date" that Azure had been used to target or harm people in Gaza, but this claim is now doubted by senior executives at its US headquarters. Microsoft has yet to launch another formal review into its ties to the Israeli military, but a spokesperson said the company takes these allegations seriously and is committed to validating new data and taking any needed action.
[1] The Guardian, Microsoft accused of helping Israeli military spy on Palestinians, 2023 [2] +972 Magazine, Microsoft's Azure cloud used by Israeli military to store and analyse Palestinian communications, 2023 [3] Local Call, Microsoft under investigation for collaboration with Israeli military intelligence unit, 2023 [4] The Guardian, Microsoft orders external review into allegations it helped Israeli military spy on Palestinians, 2023 [5] The Intercept, Microsoft's Azure Cloud Helped Israel Spy on Palestinians, Documents Show, 2023
- The joint investigation by The Guardian, +972 Magazine, and Local Call revealed that the Israeli military intelligence Unit 8200 and technology giant Microsoft have been collaborating, with Microsoft developing and hosting a customized version of its Azure cloud platform to store and analyze Palestinian private communications.
- In the midst of this partnership, Microsoft engineers, some of whom are Unit 8200 alumni, helped build secure encrypted layers around the data to protect it and enabled Israeli military intelligence to act on the information.
- The news of this collaboration has raised concerns over the ethics of enabling mass surveillance and potential human rights abuses, leading Microsoft to order an external review into the allegations.
- General-news outlets such as The Guardian, +972 Magazine, Local Call, The Intercept, and various finance and business publications have been reporting on the partnership between Microsoft and Unit 8200, bringing the issue of technology and politics into the public spotlight.
