Second Life Surveillance: Power to the People or Virtual Surveillance Society?

Martin, Jennifer

doi:10.24908/ss.v9i4.4346

Cited by 6 publications

(9 citation statements)

References 11 publications

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“…While humanitarian actors need to display accountability to donors, the nature of private vendors remains profit-motivated, resulting in conciliation of the market interest with that of implementing traceable systems of aid distribution. Resulting into private-humanitarian partnerships, such as that of the World Food Programme (WFP) with the technology giant Palantir, such agreements arguably harmonize a market logic with humanitarianism, but leave doubt on the extent to which beneficiaries' interests are effectively fulfilled (Martin, 2023;Martin & Taylor, 2021).…”

Section: Biometric Humanitarianism: Machine-readable Refugeesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Dark side ofIT: A misleading expression?

Masiero

2023

E J Info Sys Dev Countries

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Research on the “dark side” of information technology (IT) is becoming diffused in the information systems (IS) field. Focused on the negative consequences of IT on individuals, organizations and the society, such a literature has, however, neglected the contribution of ICT4D research to the debate. This paper draws on two streams of research—respectively, on digital identity systems for social protection and biometric humanitarianism—to highlight the limits of the notion of a “dark side” of IT. Using a design justice lens, it illuminates how adverse features can be purposefully designed into technology, directly producing the detrimental outcomes that cause harm on its users. Through this perspective, the notion of a “dark side” of IT is contrasted with that of a “dark matter” pointing to the substantial, rather than accidental, nature of harm generated through IT. Implications are drawn for IS research, highlighting how existing works from the ICT4D field support the “dark matter” thesis.

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Section: Biometric Humanitarianism: Machine-readable Refugeesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Dark side ofIT: A misleading expression?

Masiero

2023

E J Info Sys Dev Countries

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“…Other showed a substantial commitment to humanitarian aid, demonstrating the changing role of CSR in tackling humanitarian crises and conflicts, while some businesses maintained conventional processes or made small adjustment. Aid washing methods, according to Martin, A. (2023), involve the use of CSR programmes and other public-private partnerships with assisting actors to enhance the image of surveillance corporations and divert the public's attention from business misconduct, unethical behaviours, and questionable data practices.…”

Section: Csr Reporting In Slovakiamentioning

confidence: 99%

Corporate Social Responsibility in Business Practice of the Visegrad Region (Czechia, Poland, Slovakia)

2023

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Dear Reader, Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) has become increasingly important in the business world, and this monograph explores its significance in the Visegrad region (Czechia, Poland, Slovakia). By going beyond legal requirements, businesses can address social, environmental, and ethical concerns, building trust and enhane own reputation. Efforts of businesses are reflected not only in their outcomes but also contribute to the collective endeavour to build a 21st century society. In this endeavour, not only individuals, irrespective of their origin and nationality, but also business entities have an indispensable role as good citizens who contribute to the public welfare. These entities utilize factors, of production including the human factor, and therefore have a social responsibility not only towards their shareholders who provided capital but also towards all other stakeholders who are affected by their activities, whether positively or negatively. As a result, business entities have an irreplaceable position in building a prosperous society. The obligation to contribute to this development is voluntary and not mandated by legislation, but the activities associated with it incur costs not solely for the companies. It has been repeatedly confirmed that implementing responsible activities aimed at promoting the common good brings numerous positive effects on businesses, reflected in cost savings, improved market share, brand building, and increased attractiveness to investors. Therefore, the implementation of socially responsible activities holds an indispensable place in the management of modern enterprises. Number, character, and focus of these activities may vary across businesses, but in general, they can be observed based on the Triple Bottom Line approach, encompassing social, economic, and environmental dimensions. Recently, these corporate activities have attracted the attention of policymakers, and at the European Commission level, centralized efforts are being made to introduce mandatory reporting of these activities, which will gradually come into effect for different size categories of businesses. Furthermore, just like other aspects of everyday life and business, the field of corporate social responsibility has been significantly influenced by global crises, starting with the COVID-19 pandemic, followed by military conflict in Ukraine, and the ensuing energy crisis. This scientific monograph maps the socially responsible activities of business entities in the Visegrad region, specifically in the Czech Republic, Poland, and Slovakia. It examines their implementation and readiness of companies for mandatory reporting of CSR activities, while describing socially responsible initiatives taken by businesses to contribute to alleviatiang global crises.This scientific monograph was created within the Visegrad Fund project titled "Corporate Social Responsibility in Business Practice of the Visegrad Region" (Visegrad grand no. 22220149). The project receives co-financing from the Governments of Cz...

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“…Being simultaneously recipients of official donor money and potential donors to local beneficiaries, international non-governmental organizations implementing aid projects in the Global South (hereafter INGOs or aid organizations), humanitarian organizations (HOs) included, are expected to prevent the use of donor money for illicit purposes. To minimize transactions with designated organizations, sanctioned Terms such as digital humanitarianism (Duffield 2016), financial humanitarianism (Tazzioli 2019), surveillance humanitarianism (Latoreno 2019), humanitarian dataveillance (Sandvik 2020), and surveillance funded by foreign donors in Global South countries (Hosein and Nyst 2013;Martin 2023) reflect the controversial manner in which aid organizations engage with technologies and data. As digital innovations, especially in humanitarian fields, are not without harmful consequences (Sandvik, Jacobsen, and McDonald 2017), increasing attention has been paid to the blurred borders of control and care (Fast and Jacobsen 2019;Paragi and Altamimi 2022) and those of recognition and surveillance (Weitzberg et al 2021; see below).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Art of Screening: Reasonable Efforts and Measures at the Nexus of Aid Work and Counterterrorism

Paragi

2024

S&S

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Surveillance in the context of aid work refers to control over procedures, supplies, goods, and people that is deemed necessary for providing care. It is widely considered an inalienable, albeit criticized, part of care provision. International non-governmental organizations implementing aid projects in the Global South (hereafter INGOs or aid organizations), however, also screen individuals based on either conditional clauses in funding agreements in the context of counterterrorism or on their pursuing other organizational interests. While this opaque practice has raised increasing concerns both in humanitarian and development circles, it is much less known how screening is implemented and if it can be construed as (harmful) surveillance. Therefore, qualitative methods were used to explore a screening tool, the description of which is the core empirical part of this study, and to map INGO experiences and dilemmas with screening. As findings indicate, vendors delivering surveillance technology can help INGOs to navigate the complexity of sanctions and enforcement lists, ensure legal compliance, and demonstrate accountability towards donors, while the transparency obligation prescribed in data protection laws poses huge challenges. Furthermore, the right to be recognized, supported, assisted, and employed—either in the humanitarian or the development context—depends on how INGOs categorize individuals before screening and how they make decisions based on the results. The article contributes to earlier research by including screening in the conceptualization of (counter)surveillance in aid work.

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Second Life Surveillance: Power to the People or Virtual Surveillance Society?

Cited by 6 publications

References 11 publications

Dark side ofIT: A misleading expression?

Dark side ofIT: A misleading expression?

Corporate Social Responsibility in Business Practice of the Visegrad Region (Czechia, Poland, Slovakia)

The Art of Screening: Reasonable Efforts and Measures at the Nexus of Aid Work and Counterterrorism

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