Global Security Agencies Deploy Penlink’s Webloc Ad-Based Surveillance Technology
An investigation by Bloomberg, building upon Citizen Lab's prior research, reveals that Penlink's ad-based surveillance system, Webloc, is utilized by security agencies across numerous countries, including the US, UK, Germany, Mexico, and others. The system enables powerful mass surveillance through tracking online advertising data, originally employed by military and intelligence agencies before adoption by federal, state, and local law enforcement. Citizen Lab's research identified customers via open source intelligence, FOI requests, and infrastructure mapping, confirming deployments in the US, El Salvador, Hungary, and Austria, with Bloomberg adding more countries. The use of this intrusive surveillance technology raises serious legal and ethical concerns, especially in authoritarian states.
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Global Security Agencies Deploy Penlink’s Webloc Ad-Based Surveillance Technology
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An investigation by Bloomberg, building upon Citizen Lab's prior research, reveals that Penlink's ad-based surveillance system, Webloc, is utilized by security agencies across numerous countries, including the US, UK, Germany, Mexico, and others. The system enables powerful mass surveillance through tracking online advertising data, originally employed by military and intelligence agencies before adoption by federal, state, and local law enforcement. Citizen Lab's research identified customers via open source intelligence, FOI requests, and infrastructure mapping, confirming deployments in the US, El Salvador, Hungary, and Austria, with Bloomberg adding more countries. The use of this intrusive surveillance technology raises serious legal and ethical concerns, especially in authoritarian states.