From The Verge: Microsoft is blocking the Israeli military’s access to cloud and AI services that have been used in the mass surveillance of Palestinian civilians. Microsoft vice chair and president Brad Smith announced the decision in an internal memo to employees on Thursday, after The Guardian and others reported last month that the Israeli government stored recordings and data on Azure of up to “a million calls an hour” made by Palestinians.
“While our review is ongoing, we have found evidence that supports elements of The Guardian’s reporting,“ says Smith. ”We therefore have informed Israel Ministry of Defense (IMOD) of Microsoft’s decision to cease and disable specified IMOD subscriptions and their services, including their use of specific cloud storage and AI services and technologies. We have reviewed this decision with IMOD and the steps we are taking to ensure compliance with our terms of service, focused on ensuring our services are not used for mass surveillance of civilians.“
The block applies to “a set of services” used by a unit within the IMOD, and Smith says this move “does not impact the important work that Microsoft continues to do to protect the cybersecurity of Israel and other countries in the Middle East, including under the Abraham Accords.”
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