SMEX
smex.org
SMEX
@smex.org
SMEX is a nonprofit dedicated to safeguarding human rights in digital spaces across West Asia and North Africa.
Tomorrow, participants from across the region will gather in Beirut to defend and advance digital rights!

Follow us to keep up with our updates during Bread&Net 2025! #BreadandNet
October 28, 2025 at 6:56 PM
Bread&Net's platform is now LIVE! 🎉

You can check the agenda, build your schedule, and connect with speakers and attendees before the event.

Complete your registration on www.breadandnet.org and check out the stellar line-up of speakers taking part in Bread&Net this year.
October 23, 2025 at 12:27 PM
Every 4.5 years, countries undergo a human rights review before the UN Human Rights Council through the Universal Periodic Review (UPR). For the third time in a row, SMEX is submitting recommendations to hold Lebanon accountable.

This year's recommendations:

smex.org/smexs-recomm...
SMEX’s Recommendations for Lebanon at the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) - SMEX
Lebanon is facing its fourth Universal Periodic Review (UPR) in November 2025, a critical moment that we can leverage to...
smex.org
October 22, 2025 at 8:00 AM
Reposted by SMEX
#MENA 🌐 A new @SMEX.org report shows how commercial #spyware linked to Israel is used by regional governments to monitor and intimidate journalists, activists, and human rights defenders, urging civil society to protect themselves.

Read the report: buff.ly/iiqKccf #WANA
October 4, 2025 at 6:02 PM
Reposted by SMEX
New research from our friends at @SMEX.org takes a look at the cyber weapons industry in the West Asia/North Africa (WANA) region. smex.org/new-researc...
New Research: Click, Load, Kill: A Look into the Cyberweapon Industry in the WANA Region
<p>New Research: Click, Load, Kill: A Look into the Cyberweapon Industry in the WANA Region</p>
smex.org
October 5, 2025 at 4:59 PM
Today marks two years since the offset of Israel's genocidal campaign against Palestinians in Gaza. The atrocities unfolding since October 7 could not have taken place without Big Tech's AI-enabled weapons.
October 7, 2025 at 3:00 PM
Program's out!🎉

Over 70 human rights defenders, journalists, tech experts, and researchers from across the globe join us this year to share their insights and findings from 2025.

Explore the sessions at breadandnet.org.
October 7, 2025 at 9:07 AM
Behind every spyware attack is a corporate network. Our latest report "Click, Load, Kill" maps four key players and their role in fueling human rights violations against activists, journalists, and dissidents in our region.

Click the link for the full research: smex.org/new-research...
New Research: Click, Load, Kill: A Look into the Cyberweapon Industry in the WANA Region - SMEX
New Research: Click, Load, Kill: A Look into the Cyberweapon Industry in the WANA Region
smex.org
October 4, 2025 at 9:00 AM
Spyware is thriving in West Asia & North Africa—and guess who’s leading this deadly industry? Our new research shows that the most dangerous surveillance companies are either based in or linked to Israel.

smex.org/new-research...
New Research: Click, Load, Kill: A Look into the Cyberweapon Industry in the WANA Region
<p>One of today’s most dangerous violators of personal privacy is the commercial spyware industry—made up of vendors that design, market,…</p>
smex.org
October 2, 2025 at 1:55 PM
Reposted by SMEX
A new report by @smex.org, with support from @find.ngo & @accessnow.org, concludes that NSO Group, Cytrox/Intellexa, Cellebrite, and Saito Tech/Candiru are the most active commercial #spyware vendors in West Asia & 🌍North Africa.

smex.org/new-research...
New Research: Click, Load, Kill: A Look into the Cyberweapon Industry in the WANA Region
<p>One of today’s most dangerous violators of personal privacy is the commercial spyware industry—made up of vendors that design, market,…</p>
smex.org
October 2, 2025 at 4:59 AM
BREAKING: Who’s really leading the cyberweapons industry in West Asia and North Africa?
New research by SMEX exposes Israel-linked spyware vendors at the helm of the industry with the UAE and Saudi Arabia among top buyers.

smex.org/new-research...
New Research: Click, Load, Kill: A Look into the Cyberweapon Industry in the WANA Region - SMEX
One of today’s most dangerous violators of personal privacy is the commercial spyware industry—made up of vendors that design, market,...
smex.org
October 1, 2025 at 1:26 PM
On this International Day for Universal Access to Information, we take note of how states and tech companies either blocked people’s right to find life-saving knowledge or actively distorted the facts.
September 28, 2025 at 9:01 AM
Microsoft has announced it will cut of the Israeli military’s access to its Azure Cloud technology after a damning investigation from the Guardian revealed its key role in a mass-surveillance system capable of recording “a million calls an hour.”
September 26, 2025 at 12:28 PM
Sometimes the fight for human rights can be discouraging. SMEX has been part of the campaign to #FreeAlaa for more than 10 years. smex.org/break-the-si...

Today, we celebrate Alaa’s smile, knowing it will help us fight tomorrow. @freealaa.bsky.social
This photo of Alaa Abdel Fattah's smile by Mohamed El Raai is the most beautiful thing you could wake up to.
September 25, 2025 at 12:40 PM
Join SMEX for the launch of the CADE Mapping & Baseline Study Report on civil society in internet governance, spotlighting Global South voices.

📅 Oct 2, 2025. Register: us02web.zoom.us/meeting/regi...
September 25, 2025 at 9:27 AM
The Lebanese Parliament’s May 27 draft media law promised progress, ending pretrial detention and scrapping criminal defamation. But August's amendments risk turning it into a tool of repression.
smex.org/lebanon-ensu...
Lebanon: Ensure Draft Media Law Upholds Free Expression - SMEX
Recently Proposed Amendments Would Restrict Rights (Beirut, September 16, 2025) – Lebanon’s parliament should ensure that a draft media law...
smex.org
September 23, 2025 at 10:00 AM
Reposted by SMEX
We celebrate Alaa's freedom after being unjustly jailed for so many years. He should have never been there.

And we echo his mother Laila Soueif – whose campaign for her son's release was so incredibly inspiring – when she says she won't rest until there are no political prisoners in Egypt.
علاء علي الاسفلت!!!!

Alaa is HOME and FREE!!!
September 23, 2025 at 8:41 AM
Our dear friend Alaa Abdel Fattah will finally be released into freedom. After years of pressure from civil society, Egypt finally did the right thing and granted him amnesty. We can’t wait to see Alaa reunite with his family and loved ones.
علاء علي الاسفلت!!!!

Alaa is HOME and FREE!!!
September 23, 2025 at 9:12 AM
Is your device acting out? Don’t ignore the signs.

This short guide provided by our Digital Forensics Lab (DFL) walks you through what to look for, what not to do, and the safe steps to take next, whether you are using an Android or an iOS device.
September 19, 2025 at 11:08 AM
Reposted by SMEX
#Lebanon 🇱🇧 Maharat Foundation, @smex.org, and rights groups warn the draft media law could weaken free expression by allowing pretrial detention and vague defamation rules, urging parliament to ensure safeguards for journalists and transparent debate.
Lebanon: Ensure draft media law upholds free expression - IFEX
Rights groups warn Lebanon's draft media law could weaken free expression by allowing pretrial detention and vague defamation rules, urging transparent debate and safeguards for journalists.
buff.ly
September 18, 2025 at 7:01 PM
Reposted by SMEX
📢 Register now!

Civil society must be central to digital governance!

Join the @CADE_project consortium for the launch of our Mapping & Baseline Study (EN/FR/ES/PT). Discover barriers, solutions & next steps for inclusive participation.

🔗 us02web.zoom.us/meeting/regi...

#CADE
September 12, 2025 at 9:01 AM
Great news for everyone!

We've created tickets at reduced prices to accommodate all attendees. Head to our website breadandnet.org and get your discounted community ticket for the price of $40 to attend the event in person, in full.

Students get in for free!
September 11, 2025 at 10:54 AM
Reposted by SMEX
🌍 CADE launches Youth Voices for Digital Rights!

15 young advocates from Africa, Asia, LatAm & Europe will help shape internet governance, build advocacy skills & co-create a Youth Manifesto.

👉 Learn more: www.forus-international.org/en/campaigns...

#DigitalRights #YouthVoices #CADE
CADE Youth Voices for Digital Rights | Forus
Our younger generations of digital natives are the first to have their entire lives encoded in digital data. As the biggest user group on social media platforms, and those feeling the consequences of emerging technologies the most, young people are deeply impacted by how the digital world is governe
www.forus-international.org
September 9, 2025 at 9:35 AM
Like Meta, Google and YouTube misclassified numerous smear and hate campaigns targeting organizations and individuals such as the Hind Rajab Foundation and UN Special Rapporteur Francesca Albanese, letting them bypass restrictions and reach wider audiences.

www.misbar.com/en/editorial...
Israel Uses Sponsored Ads to Flood the Internet With Digital Propaganda
Israel has used online advertising to promote its political messaging and justify military operations.
buff.ly
September 6, 2025 at 7:14 AM
Like Meta, Google and YouTube misclassified numerous smear and hate campaigns targeting organizations and individuals such as the Hind Rajab Foundation and UN Special Rapporteur Francesca Albanese, letting them bypass restrictions and reach wider audiences.
September 5, 2025 at 2:21 PM