Technology and Human Rights

The HRI considers both the promise and threat that technology poses for human rights and how it impacts civil society

Research examines how governments can deploy technology to serve national security and foreign policy interests in a more rights-respecting manner, and the responsibility of technology companies to carry out adequate due diligence on customers and users of their products.

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Photo: Marcos del Mazo/LightRocket/Getty Images

Photo: Marcos del Mazo/LightRocket/Getty Images

Bridging the Gap: LEO Satellite Internet and Human Rights

Low Earth orbit satellite internet holds tremendous promise for keeping government functioning and civil society connected in the direst of circumstances, but it must be harnessed for the public good and evade continued authoritarian efforts to fully shut off the internet.

Critical Questions by Andrew Friedman — August 6, 2026

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Bridging the Gap: LEO Satellite Internet and Human Rights

Low Earth orbit satellite internet holds tremendous promise for keeping government functioning and civil society connected in the direst of circumstances, but it must be harnessed for the public good and evade continued authoritarian efforts to fully shut off the internet.

Critical Questions by Andrew Friedman — August 6, 2026

How Civil Society Exposes the Human Rights Risks of the Digital Silk Road

Emboldened authoritarian actors are no longer content to repress human rights in their own countries, but feel confident in their ability to share their tactics and technology across borders. Local civil society organizations stand at the front line against these mounting threats.

Commentary by Andrew Friedman — January 27, 2026

Cyber Scamming Goes Global: Sourcing Forced Labor for Fraud Factories

People from over 100 countries have been trafficked to Southeast Asia’s fraud factories. These victims fail to conform to a single profile, so survivors often face insufficient or inappropriate law enforcement responses. 

Critical Questions by Lauren Burke Preputnik, Julia Dickson, Aly Senko, and Andrew Friedman — December 12, 2024

Export Controls and Human Rights: An Emerging Technology Agenda

Export controls can help limit authoritarian regimes’ access to surveillance technology made in democracies, but they cannot prevent such regimes from developing and selling that technology to each other.  

Commentary by Emily Benson and Catharine Mouradian — November 29, 2023