WhatsApp Allegedly Used to Target Palestinians via Israel’s Lavender AI System
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Hashim Sheikh
- . April 21, 2024
- . Update: April 22, 2024 11:33 am
Lavender’s role in targeting suspected militants and civilian casualties:
The use of Lavender by the Israeli military to target and eliminate suspected militants has raised concerns about potential civilian casualties. The system’s alleged involvement in the deaths of Palestinian civilians in Gaza has sparked international outrage.
WhatsApp’s influence on Lavender’s identification process:
Software engineer and activist Paul Biggar highlighted the critical role of WhatsApp in Lavender’s identification process. Membership in WhatsApp groups containing suspected militants can potentially influence the system’s target selection, leading to unintended consequences for users associated with those groups.
Meta’s potential complicity and concerns over human rights violations:
Biggar suggested that Meta, the parent company of WhatsApp, may be complicit, knowingly or unknowingly, in Lavender’s operations. This raises concerns about potential violations of international humanitarian law and Meta’s own human rights commitments.
Meta’s handling of pro-Palestinian voices and allegations of bias:
Meta has faced criticism for its perceived double standards in favor of Israel. The company’s consideration of including the term “Zionist” in its hate speech policy and its handling of pro-Palestinian content have generated accusations of bias and censorship.
Controversial feature on Instagram and censorship concerns:
Meta recently introduced a feature on its subsidiary platform, Instagram, that automatically limits users’ exposure to “political” content. This move has been criticized as a systematic way to censor pro-Palestinian voices, raising concerns about freedom of expression and content moderation.
WhatsApp’s response and the need for further investigation:
In response to the allegations, a WhatsApp spokesperson stated that the company could not verify the accuracy of the report. However, they emphasized that WhatsApp does not have backdoors and does not provide bulk information to any government. The allegations surrounding Lavender’s use of WhatsApp call for further investigation and transparency regarding privacy, encryption, and the ethical implications of AI targeting systems.
