PUBLICATION: Policy paper
SPYWARE: The Negation of Human Rights Under the Pretext of “Security”
The point of departure for this analysis was the idea that spyware, by its nature, is an indiscriminate, comprehensive and covert surveillance tool, structurally incompatible with the principles of necessity, proportionality and targeted data processing.
The Constitution, Criminal Procedure Code, Criminal Code, and the respective laws on intelligence services, electronic communication, personal data protection, and information security have already set forth rigorous conditions for conducting secret monitoring that spyware cannot meet in practice. International standards and comparative practice have confirmed significant differences: massive “collateral” collection of third-party data, undermining privacy; compromising professional secrecy and the protection of journalists’ sources; abuse of the pretext of “national security”; and the prevention of effective legal protection due to the secrecy of the measures.
In Serbia, there are already documented cases of targeting journalists and activists without any accountability for the persons responsible for that. The conclusion is self-explanatory: urgent prohibition of spyware is needed, as well as the prosecution of the so-far illicit practices.
Skip to PDF content
Tags: activists, data processing, human rights, security, Spyware
DETAILS
DATE: 26.01.2026
TOPICS: BSCP, Challenges Risks and Threats, Cyber Security, In Focus
TYPE: Policy paper
AUTHORS
SHARE
PDF PREVIEW
RELATED
Date: 28.05.2026.
Author: Belgrade Centre for Security Policy
As the coordinator of the Working Group for Chapter 24 within the National Convention on the European Union (NCEU), BCSP compiled joint comments from nine NCEU member organizations on the Draft Law on Internal Affairs, which was subject to official public debate in April 2026.
Date: 27.05.2026.
Author: Anđela Savić |
Civil society organisations, journalists, and human rights defenders across the Western Balkans and European Union (EU) are operating in a digital environment defined by raising threats and inadequate protection. This analysis presents findings from a needs assessment survey conducted within the “Defending Digital Freedoms: Strengthening Civil Society Resilience against Digital Repression in Europe” project, gathering 239 responses from 11 countries (six Western Balkan and five EU member states).
Date: 07.04.2026.
Author: Belgrade Centre for Security Policy
This paper examines how the Serbian Orthodox Church (SOC) is portrayed in existing research and media discourse, primarily as a major conduit of Russian influence in the Western Balkans through narratives tied to the Kremlin’s “Russian World” project and hybrid warfare activities.
