Surveillance
Despite the government’s initiatives to encourage Internet use, the Egyptian authorities continue to place restrictions on how Egyptians use the Internet. In February
2005, for example, Egypt’s Ministry of Interior ordered Internet cafe ´ managers and
owners to record their customers’ names and identification numbers and threatened
to close the cafe ´s if they refused to implement the order. This kind of action was condemned by a Cairo-based human rights group, which described it as ‘‘a gross violation
to the right to privacy.’’ 26
In August 2008, the Egyptian authorities imposed new measures that increased the
extent of censorship on Internet users by demanding that Internet cafe ´ customers be
required to provide their names, e-mail addresses, and telephone numbers before they
could use the Internet. Once the data were provided, customers would then receive a
text message on their cell phones with a personal identification number (PIN) that
they could use to access the Internet. A Cairo-based human rights group, the Arabic
Network for Human Rights Information, considered these requirements to be censorship procedures. 27
Egypt has witnessed an increase in the use of Facebook for social activism, which
alerted the government to the potential force of the social networking site. 28 As a
result, there were rumors that it might be blocked, especially after a group of activists
managed to recruit supporters using Facebook for a general strike that took place on
April 6, 2008, protesting against rising food prices and President Mubarak’s government. 29 Another opinion suggested that the authorities would rather leave Facebook
accessible so that they could trace back suspect online activities to the individuals
responsible and punish them. 30 Because of the increasing use of Facebook for political
activism in Egypt, activists have reported that the government has started to monitor
the social networking site for the organization of any possible activities similar to that
of April 6, 2008. The vice chairman of Egypt’s El Ghad opposition party, Wael Nawara,
said, ‘‘The word is that there is even a special division called the State Security Investigation Police for Facebook.’’ 31
In addition to monitoring online activism, a constitutional reform approved by parliament in March 2007 gave authorities the power to spy on the correspondence of
suspected terrorists and to tap their telephones without a court order. 32 In fact, Vodafone’s global head of content standards, Annie Mullins, revealed in February 2009 that
Vodafone handed over communications data to the Egyptian authorities in response to
government demands. This data may have been used to help identify rioters who were
protesting over the bread crisis, which erupted in the Egyptian town of Mahallah elHubra in April 2008. During the demonstrations, many protesters carried cell phones,
using them to call friends and send text messages. On December 22, individuals were
convicted in connection with the food riots. 33
Egypt
541
Despite the government’s initiatives to encourage Internet use, the Egyptian authorities continue to place restrictions on how Egyptians use the Internet. In February
2005, for example, Egypt’s Ministry of Interior ordered Internet cafe ´ managers and
owners to record their customers’ names and identification numbers and threatened
to close the cafe ´s if they refused to implement the order. This kind of action was condemned by a Cairo-based human rights group, which described it as ‘‘a gross violation
to the right to privacy.’’ 26
In August 2008, the Egyptian authorities imposed new measures that increased the
extent of censorship on Internet users by demanding that Internet cafe ´ customers be
required to provide their names, e-mail addresses, and telephone numbers before they
could use the Internet. Once the data were provided, customers would then receive a
text message on their cell phones with a personal identification number (PIN) that
they could use to access the Internet. A Cairo-based human rights group, the Arabic
Network for Human Rights Information, considered these requirements to be censorship procedures. 27
Egypt has witnessed an increase in the use of Facebook for social activism, which
alerted the government to the potential force of the social networking site. 28 As a
result, there were rumors that it might be blocked, especially after a group of activists
managed to recruit supporters using Facebook for a general strike that took place on
April 6, 2008, protesting against rising food prices and President Mubarak’s government. 29 Another opinion suggested that the authorities would rather leave Facebook
accessible so that they could trace back suspect online activities to the individuals
responsible and punish them. 30 Because of the increasing use of Facebook for political
activism in Egypt, activists have reported that the government has started to monitor
the social networking site for the organization of any possible activities similar to that
of April 6, 2008. The vice chairman of Egypt’s El Ghad opposition party, Wael Nawara,
said, ‘‘The word is that there is even a special division called the State Security Investigation Police for Facebook.’’ 31
In addition to monitoring online activism, a constitutional reform approved by parliament in March 2007 gave authorities the power to spy on the correspondence of
suspected terrorists and to tap their telephones without a court order. 32 In fact, Vodafone’s global head of content standards, Annie Mullins, revealed in February 2009 that
Vodafone handed over communications data to the Egyptian authorities in response to
government demands. This data may have been used to help identify rioters who were
protesting over the bread crisis, which erupted in the Egyptian town of Mahallah elHubra in April 2008. During the demonstrations, many protesters carried cell phones,
using them to call friends and send text messages. On December 22, individuals were
convicted in connection with the food riots. 33
Egypt
541