Obama executive order targets tech companies

President Obama issued an executive order on Monday that lets US officials impose sanctions against foreign nationals that used new technologies to help carry out human rights abuses. These could include cellphone tracking and Internet monitoring, The Washington Post reported. Social media and cellphone technology such as SMS and e-mail allows the populace to help organize protests against autocratic governments, which in turn use technology to shut them down.

These human rights violations are especially true in the Middle East and North Africa over the course of the last 18 months. Syrian and Iranian governments have also used surveillance and blocked Internet access, as well as tracked the movements of opposition figures, using online technology.

The order targets the companies and individuals that help out the Iranian and Syrian government achieve these goals. Future ones could target other countries as well. Late last year, Syria imposed an iPhone ban to control dissidents.

By Electronista Staff

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