Exposed: IDF’s Elite Spy Unit Stashes Millions of Palestinian Calls in Microsoft Cloud
A Guardian exposé reveals that Israel's Unit 8200 has allegedly used Microsoft Azure to store millions of intercepted Palestinian phone calls, raising alarms about mass surveillance and cloud-enabled intelligence gathering.
A recent exposé by The Guardian, published yesterday (Wednesday) has shed light on Israel's signals intelligence unit, Unit 8200, allegedly leveraging Microsoft Azure cloud services to archive millions of intercepted Palestinian phone calls. The report, based on whistleblower accounts and internal documents, claims this partnership arose from the IDF's outdated on-premises storage systems buckling under the sheer volume of surveillance data collected amid escalating conflicts in Gaza and Judea and Samaria.
Key Findings from The Guardian's Report
Scale of Surveillance
Unit 8200, Israel's elite cyber and signals intelligence arm (often compared to the NSA), has reportedly amassed petabytes of data, including voice recordings from Palestinian telecom networks. The Guardian estimates "millions" of calls are stored, potentially dating back years, with metadata like caller IDs, timestamps, and locations also archived. Sources told the outlet this includes routine civilian communications, not just those linked to Hamas or other terrorists.
Why Microsoft Azure?
The shift to cloud storage began around 2022-2023, driven by infrastructure limitations. Israel's military servers couldn't handle the data explosion from intensified monitoring post-October 7, 2023, Hamas attacks. Azure's scalability, encryption, and AI tools for analysis (like speech-to-text) made it appealing. The report notes Microsoft customized services for the IDF, ensuring compliance with Israeli data laws that prohibit exporting sensitive info abroad, data is stored in Israeli-based Azure regions.
Ethical and Legal Red Flags
Critics, including human rights groups like Amnesty International, argue this enables mass surveillance violating international law, potentially aiding in targeted strikes or arrests. The Guardian highlights parallels to US tech firms' roles in global spying, citing Snowden leaks. Microsoft responded that it adheres to strict policies, but declined specifics on the IDF deal. The IDF denied improper use, stating operations are "lawful and necessary for national security."
This isn't Unit 8200's first controversy. Known for cyber feats like Stuxnet (targeting Iran's nuclear program), the unit has faced accusations of pervasive Palestinian surveillance via tools like Pegasus spyware. Post-October 7, Israel ramped up intel ops, intercepting communications to thwart attacks, but critics say it blurs lines between combatants and civilians.
Microsoft's involvement draws scrutiny amid its $22 billion in US military contracts and Azure's use by governments worldwide. Privacy advocates like the Electronic Frontier Foundation called for transparency, warning of "unaccountable surveillance empires." In Israel, opposition MKs demanded a Knesset probe, while Netanyahu's office dismissed the report as "biased."
The story has gone viral, with X (formerly Twitter) buzzing over privacy implications in AI-driven warfare. As tech and military ties deepen, this could prompt regulatory pushback, similar to EU data protection challenges against US firms.