Antonella Napolitano
@svaroschi.bsky.social
Working on surveillance technology, migration, welfare.
Collaborating with public interest newsrooms and human rights orgs.
Bridging and connecting.
Previously at Privacy International, Open Migration, TechPresident.
Collaborating with public interest newsrooms and human rights orgs.
Bridging and connecting.
Previously at Privacy International, Open Migration, TechPresident.
Pinned
Companies are marketing “alternatives” to immigration detention such as ankle monitors, GPS-enabled watches, and biometric reporting apps. But research by Petra Molnar, Daniel Ghezelbash, Carolina Gottardo, and Antonella Napolitano finds that tech doesn’t dismantle detention—it expands it.
Technology is Turning Immigration Detention into an Invisible Leash | TechPolicy.Press
Rights-based and community-centered alternatives to detention are possible, write Petra Molnar, Daniel Ghezelbash, Carolina Gottardo, and Antonella Napolitano.
www.techpolicy.press
Without a shift in policy, the dominant trajectory of technology in immigration will continue to be digital surveillance. It doesn't have to be that way.
Very glad to talk about our global research on technology and alternatives to detention on @techpolicypress.bsky.social.
Very glad to talk about our global research on technology and alternatives to detention on @techpolicypress.bsky.social.
Reposted by Antonella Napolitano
ICE's Alternatives to Detention programme is said to be "more humane" – but for Juliana and her children, it means living under constant pressure.
Read the new blog post by @gesanchez.bsky.social and Juliana R. S. ⤵️
blogs.law.ox.ac.uk/border-crimi...
Read the new blog post by @gesanchez.bsky.social and Juliana R. S. ⤵️
blogs.law.ox.ac.uk/border-crimi...
January 21, 2026 at 11:47 AM
ICE's Alternatives to Detention programme is said to be "more humane" – but for Juliana and her children, it means living under constant pressure.
Read the new blog post by @gesanchez.bsky.social and Juliana R. S. ⤵️
blogs.law.ox.ac.uk/border-crimi...
Read the new blog post by @gesanchez.bsky.social and Juliana R. S. ⤵️
blogs.law.ox.ac.uk/border-crimi...
Reposted by Antonella Napolitano
🚨 Exclusive: Tony Blair isn’t just a big fan of AI — he's now trying to build and sell AI tools to governments
Tony Blair Institute staff have described the plan as 'insane' and compared it to Palantir
New by D4S and @lighthousereports.com 🧵
democracyforsale.substack.com/p/blair-bids...
Tony Blair Institute staff have described the plan as 'insane' and compared it to Palantir
New by D4S and @lighthousereports.com 🧵
democracyforsale.substack.com/p/blair-bids...
Blair bids to build own AI tools to rival Palantir
TBI insiders warn of “'insane” plan to transform think tank into a tech company
democracyforsale.substack.com
January 9, 2026 at 5:22 PM
🚨 Exclusive: Tony Blair isn’t just a big fan of AI — he's now trying to build and sell AI tools to governments
Tony Blair Institute staff have described the plan as 'insane' and compared it to Palantir
New by D4S and @lighthousereports.com 🧵
democracyforsale.substack.com/p/blair-bids...
Tony Blair Institute staff have described the plan as 'insane' and compared it to Palantir
New by D4S and @lighthousereports.com 🧵
democracyforsale.substack.com/p/blair-bids...
Reposted by Antonella Napolitano
"This was not the first time I’d interviewed a displaced, dispossessed person who was tacitly asking me to recognize their humanity. It never got easier." from @lisang.bsky.social newlinesmag.com/reportage/wh...
While Israel’s Construction Industry Falters, Apartments Are Springing up Around Ramallah
Revoking the permits of 160,000 Palestinian workers has meant chaos for building projects and has all but destroyed the economy of the West Bank — though for some, it is a desirable place to own prope...
newlinesmag.com
January 8, 2026 at 10:53 PM
"This was not the first time I’d interviewed a displaced, dispossessed person who was tacitly asking me to recognize their humanity. It never got easier." from @lisang.bsky.social newlinesmag.com/reportage/wh...
Reposted by Antonella Napolitano
If you're new here and happen to see this, here's a Critical Tech starter pack, full of interesting folk to follow go.bsky.app/VFxSES6 And if you have a small account (<10k followers) and would like to be added for visibility, let me know! (Although response times may be slow)
January 8, 2026 at 12:27 PM
If you're new here and happen to see this, here's a Critical Tech starter pack, full of interesting folk to follow go.bsky.app/VFxSES6 And if you have a small account (<10k followers) and would like to be added for visibility, let me know! (Although response times may be slow)
Reposted by Antonella Napolitano
New: we've obtained material explaining how an ICE surveillance system, called Webloc, works. Draw shape on a map, see all phones available there, follow them home. All without warrant
“This is a very dangerous tool in the hands of an out-of-control agency.” www.404media.co/inside-ices-...
“This is a very dangerous tool in the hands of an out-of-control agency.” www.404media.co/inside-ices-...
Inside ICE’s Tool to Monitor Phones in Entire Neighborhoods
404 Media has obtained material that explains how Tangles and Webloc, two surveillance systems ICE recently purchased, work. Webloc can track phones without a warrant and follow their owners home or t...
www.404media.co
January 8, 2026 at 2:03 PM
New: we've obtained material explaining how an ICE surveillance system, called Webloc, works. Draw shape on a map, see all phones available there, follow them home. All without warrant
“This is a very dangerous tool in the hands of an out-of-control agency.” www.404media.co/inside-ices-...
“This is a very dangerous tool in the hands of an out-of-control agency.” www.404media.co/inside-ices-...
Reposted by Antonella Napolitano
AI is big business at Europe’s borders
Exemptions for research and growing militarisation of border policy across Europe are creating lucrative opportunities. Defence firms benefit most and now research institutes in Switzerland are also cashing in.
www.swissinfo.ch/eng/human-ri...
Exemptions for research and growing militarisation of border policy across Europe are creating lucrative opportunities. Defence firms benefit most and now research institutes in Switzerland are also cashing in.
www.swissinfo.ch/eng/human-ri...
AI is big business at Europe's borders
Exemptions for research and growing militarisation of border policy across Europe are creating lucrative opportunities.
www.swissinfo.ch
December 17, 2025 at 7:38 AM
AI is big business at Europe’s borders
Exemptions for research and growing militarisation of border policy across Europe are creating lucrative opportunities. Defence firms benefit most and now research institutes in Switzerland are also cashing in.
www.swissinfo.ch/eng/human-ri...
Exemptions for research and growing militarisation of border policy across Europe are creating lucrative opportunities. Defence firms benefit most and now research institutes in Switzerland are also cashing in.
www.swissinfo.ch/eng/human-ri...
Talk about bad companies
(Osborne stays a luminous example of a reverse benchmark)
www.reuters.com/business/ope...
(Osborne stays a luminous example of a reverse benchmark)
www.reuters.com/business/ope...
OpenAI taps former UK finance minister Osborne to lead global Stargate expansion
OpenAI has appointed former British finance minister George Osborne as managing director and head of its "OpenAI for Countries" initiative, the company said on Tuesday, as the ChatGPT maker ramps up e...
www.reuters.com
December 17, 2025 at 8:19 AM
Talk about bad companies
(Osborne stays a luminous example of a reverse benchmark)
www.reuters.com/business/ope...
(Osborne stays a luminous example of a reverse benchmark)
www.reuters.com/business/ope...
Reposted by Antonella Napolitano
"It’s extraction disguised as partnership, where protective language exists but enforcement mechanisms don’t."
John-Allan Namu on the Kenya-US Health Pact and language, intent, and how to re-imagine what health systems and economies could be.
www.theelephant.info/analysis/202...
John-Allan Namu on the Kenya-US Health Pact and language, intent, and how to re-imagine what health systems and economies could be.
www.theelephant.info/analysis/202...
JOHN-ALLAN NAMU - Kenya-US Health Pact: The Brutality Is in the Benign - The Elephant
An old map of Africa showed me how calmly power redraws the world. The Kenya–US health pact does it again — using soft language to mask a new extraction, this time of African health data in the global...
www.theelephant.info
December 16, 2025 at 8:14 AM
"It’s extraction disguised as partnership, where protective language exists but enforcement mechanisms don’t."
John-Allan Namu on the Kenya-US Health Pact and language, intent, and how to re-imagine what health systems and economies could be.
www.theelephant.info/analysis/202...
John-Allan Namu on the Kenya-US Health Pact and language, intent, and how to re-imagine what health systems and economies could be.
www.theelephant.info/analysis/202...
"What Mitsotakis sells as a “success story” is a classic regime of accumulation: EU money, cheap labor, and privatized public goods generate healthy returns for banks, construction conglomerates, and hotel chains, while the social wage is stripped back even further."
Spot on @gsamaras.bsky.social
Spot on @gsamaras.bsky.social
December 15, 2025 at 7:35 PM
"What Mitsotakis sells as a “success story” is a classic regime of accumulation: EU money, cheap labor, and privatized public goods generate healthy returns for banks, construction conglomerates, and hotel chains, while the social wage is stripped back even further."
Spot on @gsamaras.bsky.social
Spot on @gsamaras.bsky.social
Reposted by Antonella Napolitano
Fuori una nuova puntata di #Newsroom, il nostro podcast settimanale.
Ep 68 - L’Italia sostiene il piano della Libia per costruire 70 nuovi centri per i rimpatri volontari. I misteri di Arkenu, la compagnia che ridisegna il potere petrolifero libico
🎧 Ascolta #Newsroom ora ⬇️
Ep 68 - L’Italia sostiene il piano della Libia per costruire 70 nuovi centri per i rimpatri volontari. I misteri di Arkenu, la compagnia che ridisegna il potere petrolifero libico
🎧 Ascolta #Newsroom ora ⬇️
Ep 68 – L’Italia sostiene il piano libico per 70 nuovi centri di rimpatrio. I misteri di Arkenu e il nuovo potere petrolifero in Libia.
open.spotify.com
December 15, 2025 at 10:04 AM
Reposted by Antonella Napolitano
Sabato è uscita #Muckrakers e in questo nuovo episodio e insieme a Gabriele Ciraolo copriamo come la Fifa abbia deciso di difendere gli interessi economici delle società.
Ci si può iscrivere qui: irpimedia.irpi.eu/newsletter/
Ci si può iscrivere qui: irpimedia.irpi.eu/newsletter/
LE NEWSLETTER DI IRPIMEDIA
IrpiMedia offre tre newsletter gratuite. Scegli quale preferisci ricevere e iscriviti utilizzando l'apposito modulo.
irpimedia.irpi.eu
December 15, 2025 at 10:06 AM
Sabato è uscita #Muckrakers e in questo nuovo episodio e insieme a Gabriele Ciraolo copriamo come la Fifa abbia deciso di difendere gli interessi economici delle società.
Ci si può iscrivere qui: irpimedia.irpi.eu/newsletter/
Ci si può iscrivere qui: irpimedia.irpi.eu/newsletter/
Reposted by Antonella Napolitano
And I fear the UK isn’t far off doing something similar, despite the clear dangers people face www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home...
They fought with Britain and US in Afghanistan – now Taliban are taking their revenge
After the Taliban takeover of Kabul in 2021, Britain pledged sanctuary to Afghans who faced reprisals for working with UK forces – but thousands are still waiting. Now, as Britain drags its heels, we ...
www.independent.co.uk
December 12, 2025 at 7:32 AM
And I fear the UK isn’t far off doing something similar, despite the clear dangers people face www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home...
Reposted by Antonella Napolitano
Where have we got to when a European govt is telling Afghans who are at risk of being killed for work they did for said govt that they will not be brought to safety as promised because there’s “no longer any political interest” in helping them? Terrifying shift www.theguardian.com/world/2025/d...
Germany drops promise to resettle hundreds of Afghans
Interior ministry will tell 640 people awaiting sanctuary ‘there is no longer any political interest in their being admitted’
www.theguardian.com
December 12, 2025 at 7:25 AM
Where have we got to when a European govt is telling Afghans who are at risk of being killed for work they did for said govt that they will not be brought to safety as promised because there’s “no longer any political interest” in helping them? Terrifying shift www.theguardian.com/world/2025/d...
Reposted by Antonella Napolitano
ICE is using smartwatches to track pregnant women, even during labor: ‘She was so afraid they would take her baby’
ICE is using smartwatches to track pregnant women, even during labor: ‘She was so afraid they would take her baby’
Pregnant immigrants in ICE monitoring programs are avoiding care, fearing detention during labor and delivery
www.theguardian.com
December 11, 2025 at 11:08 PM
ICE is using smartwatches to track pregnant women, even during labor: ‘She was so afraid they would take her baby’
Reposted by Antonella Napolitano
Nelson Mandela died 12 years ago. In 1995 the UK government rejected his personal appeal to impose oil sanctions on Nigeria after its military regime executed nine environmental activists — as it wanted to protect oil company Shell’s commercial interests.
www.declassifieduk.org/revealed-bri...
www.declassifieduk.org/revealed-bri...
Britain rebuffed Nelson Mandela’s appeal for oil sanctions against Nigeria after it executed environmentalists
The British government rejected Nelson Mandela’s personal appeal to impose oil sanctions on Nigeria after its military regime executed nine environmental activists in 1995 as it wanted to protect oil ...
www.declassifieduk.org
December 6, 2025 at 4:50 PM
Nelson Mandela died 12 years ago. In 1995 the UK government rejected his personal appeal to impose oil sanctions on Nigeria after its military regime executed nine environmental activists — as it wanted to protect oil company Shell’s commercial interests.
www.declassifieduk.org/revealed-bri...
www.declassifieduk.org/revealed-bri...
Reposted by Antonella Napolitano
NEW — I put together a list of independent journalism subscriptions that would make great holiday gifts. From music to politics, astronomy to alcohol, tech to social justice, there’s something for [almost] everyone. Support indie media *and* surprise and delight your loved ones!
My guide:
My guide:
Giving the gift of independent journalism: a guide
The Handbasket has subscription suggestions for almost everyone on your list.
www.thehandbasket.co
December 6, 2025 at 3:38 PM
NEW — I put together a list of independent journalism subscriptions that would make great holiday gifts. From music to politics, astronomy to alcohol, tech to social justice, there’s something for [almost] everyone. Support indie media *and* surprise and delight your loved ones!
My guide:
My guide:
Reposted by Antonella Napolitano
The Authoritarian Stack reveals what we already suspected: corporations have become the OS of U.S. governance. Cloud computing, AI, defense, satellites—all privatized. Unaccountable boards write the rules now.
www.authoritarian-stack.info
www.authoritarian-stack.info
The Authoritarian Stack
How Tech Billionaires Are Building a Post-Democratic America — And Why Europe Is Next
www.authoritarian-stack.info
December 6, 2025 at 5:30 AM
The Authoritarian Stack reveals what we already suspected: corporations have become the OS of U.S. governance. Cloud computing, AI, defense, satellites—all privatized. Unaccountable boards write the rules now.
www.authoritarian-stack.info
www.authoritarian-stack.info
Reposted by Antonella Napolitano
💰 €58-64k annually FTE
🕐 0.5 freelance contract
🏡 Flexible and remote working
🚆 20 travel days per year
🌍 Open to residents of Council of Europe countries, Russia or Belarus
journalismarena.eu/collaborativ...
🕐 0.5 freelance contract
🏡 Flexible and remote working
🚆 20 travel days per year
🌍 Open to residents of Council of Europe countries, Russia or Belarus
journalismarena.eu/collaborativ...
We are hiring
Empower journalists to work safely and efficiently across borders! At Arena for Journalism in Europe, we are looking for someone to coordinate the Collaborative Desk and lead security awareness…
journalismarena.eu
December 6, 2025 at 7:00 AM
💰 €58-64k annually FTE
🕐 0.5 freelance contract
🏡 Flexible and remote working
🚆 20 travel days per year
🌍 Open to residents of Council of Europe countries, Russia or Belarus
journalismarena.eu/collaborativ...
🕐 0.5 freelance contract
🏡 Flexible and remote working
🚆 20 travel days per year
🌍 Open to residents of Council of Europe countries, Russia or Belarus
journalismarena.eu/collaborativ...
Reposted by Antonella Napolitano
Are you an early-career professional who is passionate about investigative journalism? Are you constantly curious about new ways of doing journalism and making it reach critical audiences?
You might just be the fellow we are looking for.
You might just be the fellow we are looking for.
December 2, 2025 at 12:15 PM
Are you an early-career professional who is passionate about investigative journalism? Are you constantly curious about new ways of doing journalism and making it reach critical audiences?
You might just be the fellow we are looking for.
You might just be the fellow we are looking for.
Reposted by Antonella Napolitano
Un gruppo di deputati della maggioranza ha citato il piano per realizzare 70 centri per i rimpatri in Libia in una mozione approvata dal parlamento e dal governo. Sarebbe già stato discusso anche con il ministro Piantedosi.
🧵
🧵
L’Italia sostiene il piano della Libia per costruire 70 nuovi centri per i rimpatri volontari
È quanto si legge in una mozione della maggioranza approvata il 16 ottobre. Il «coordinatore regionale» del progetto sui rimpatri volontari è un poliziotto italiano, Vincenzo Tagliaferri. La Libia, in...
irpimedia.irpi.eu
December 5, 2025 at 10:51 AM
Un gruppo di deputati della maggioranza ha citato il piano per realizzare 70 centri per i rimpatri in Libia in una mozione approvata dal parlamento e dal governo. Sarebbe già stato discusso anche con il ministro Piantedosi.
🧵
🧵
Reposted by Antonella Napolitano
NEW REPORT: The hostile environment is coded into the digital immigration system.
Migrants are stressed out by this complex and faulty system.
Access to housing, work and services hangs in the balance with little support from the Home Office.
Read more ⬇️
www.openrightsgroup.org/press-releas...
Migrants are stressed out by this complex and faulty system.
Access to housing, work and services hangs in the balance with little support from the Home Office.
Read more ⬇️
www.openrightsgroup.org/press-releas...
Stressed, Fearful and Excluded: New research exposes harms of digitalising immigration status
New research warns that the digitalisation of immigration status system is causing stress, confusion, and exclusion and placing an unfair burden on migrants to navigate a complex system and resolve…
www.openrightsgroup.org
December 5, 2025 at 9:20 AM
NEW REPORT: The hostile environment is coded into the digital immigration system.
Migrants are stressed out by this complex and faulty system.
Access to housing, work and services hangs in the balance with little support from the Home Office.
Read more ⬇️
www.openrightsgroup.org/press-releas...
Migrants are stressed out by this complex and faulty system.
Access to housing, work and services hangs in the balance with little support from the Home Office.
Read more ⬇️
www.openrightsgroup.org/press-releas...
Unsurprisingly, shifting to a digital process for "innovation"'s sake created exclusion and stress. Authorities are bound to repeat the same mistakes if they don't focus on the needs of people and on the existing issues.
It's inefficient and expensive (despite the claims of some think tanks).
It's inefficient and expensive (despite the claims of some think tanks).
The shift to a "digital only immigration system" is already causing distress and exclusion for many migrants.
Our work with the University of Warwick has shown significant issues with the system.
We will be launching our report later today detailing the problems.
www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025...
Our work with the University of Warwick has shown significant issues with the system.
We will be launching our report later today detailing the problems.
www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025...
UK’s new digital-only immigration system creating exclusion and fear, study finds
Obtaining an eVisa to prove their status or right to legally reside in Britain is causing migrants high levels of stress
www.theguardian.com
December 5, 2025 at 9:54 AM
Unsurprisingly, shifting to a digital process for "innovation"'s sake created exclusion and stress. Authorities are bound to repeat the same mistakes if they don't focus on the needs of people and on the existing issues.
It's inefficient and expensive (despite the claims of some think tanks).
It's inefficient and expensive (despite the claims of some think tanks).
Reposted by Antonella Napolitano
A first-of-its-kind Texas law takes effect today. It aims to dam the flood of abortion pills into the red state — by letting people sue one another.
@daniellestephens.bsky.social and I went deep on the new law for a special episode of Politics Weekly America.
www.theguardian.com/politics/aud...
@daniellestephens.bsky.social and I went deep on the new law for a special episode of Politics Weekly America.
www.theguardian.com/politics/aud...
Has a Texas law created ‘abortion bounty hunters’? – podcast
In this special episode, the Guardian US reproductive health and justice reporter Carter Sherman speaks to people who are using, providing and protecting abortion pills and those fighting against them...
www.theguardian.com
December 4, 2025 at 2:24 PM
A first-of-its-kind Texas law takes effect today. It aims to dam the flood of abortion pills into the red state — by letting people sue one another.
@daniellestephens.bsky.social and I went deep on the new law for a special episode of Politics Weekly America.
www.theguardian.com/politics/aud...
@daniellestephens.bsky.social and I went deep on the new law for a special episode of Politics Weekly America.
www.theguardian.com/politics/aud...
Reposted by Antonella Napolitano
🚨 A huge leak exposes the new targets and internal operations of Intellexa, the secretive and murky company behind the notorious Predator spyware.
Introducing #IntellexaLeaks, a joint investigation with partners @insidestory.gr, @haaretzcom.bsky.social & WAV Research Collective 🧵👇
Introducing #IntellexaLeaks, a joint investigation with partners @insidestory.gr, @haaretzcom.bsky.social & WAV Research Collective 🧵👇
December 4, 2025 at 2:38 PM
🚨 A huge leak exposes the new targets and internal operations of Intellexa, the secretive and murky company behind the notorious Predator spyware.
Introducing #IntellexaLeaks, a joint investigation with partners @insidestory.gr, @haaretzcom.bsky.social & WAV Research Collective 🧵👇
Introducing #IntellexaLeaks, a joint investigation with partners @insidestory.gr, @haaretzcom.bsky.social & WAV Research Collective 🧵👇