Global IFJ study exposes worldwide systemic surveillance of journalists

The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ), the world's largest organisation of journalists, has launched a landmark investigative study on 28 April exposing how journalists across the globe are subject to a systemic infrastructure of control through increasingly sophisticated digital surveillance technologies. The study provides urgent recommendations to strengthen journalists' security and protect the media.

Credit: IFJ.

The IFJ study 'Global Surveillance of Journalists: A Technical Mapping of Tools, Tactics and Threats', provides a unique and comprehensive overview of the surveillance ecosystem confronting journalists globally and its far-reaching consequences for independent reporting. It reveals how practices that were once limited to isolated state operations have evolved into a global industry involving commercial spyware vendors, telecommunications infrastructure and weak or absent oversight.

Drawing on interviews with cybersecurity experts, forensic analysts and journalists from diverse parts of the world, as well as technical documentation and verified investigations between 2021 and 2025, the IFJ's study paints a grim picture of how the act of reporting has become intertwined with the risk of being watched, tracked or hacked.

The normalisation of surveillance

The IFJ findings show how ordinary phishing emails, fake websites, and 'off-the-shelf' stalkerware now coexist with state-grade spyware, creating a continuum of threats of surveillance against journalists.

The study demonstrates how sophisticated spyware, once reserved for military intelligence - such as Pegasus, Predator and Graphite - has been repackaged as 'lawful intercept' technology and marketed to governments around the world. These spyware tools now offer so-called "zero-click" or highly intrusive "one-click" capabilities, allowing devices to be compromised without meaningful user interaction.

Across the case studies examined, the study points at a similar pattern: the convergence of commercial spyware, state intelligence and weak oversight. The report depicts a world in which spyware exports are often unregulated, legal, parliamentary and/or independent oversight is absent, and accountability for abuses becomes almost impossible.

AI automates surveillance

The study shows how the data harvested through these mechanisms is fed into artificial intelligence (AI) dashboards that correlate calls, messages, geolocation data, and online activity -automating surveillance at a scale once unimaginable.

"In conflict zones, such as Gaza or Ukraine, AI systems now fuse telecom and drone feeds to identify and track journalists, blurring the line between observation and physical targeting", the IFJ says.

Comparative country case studies

The report presents a series of country case studies spanning regions and political systems.

These documented cases confirmed incidents of digital surveillance against journalists, identifying the tools used, including commercial spyware, telecom interception and forensic extraction, as well as the state, institutional or corporate actors involved.

Among the cases examined, allegations in Greece point to the misuse of lawful interception capabilities to monitor journalists, alongside the separate Predator spyware scandal, highlighting how different layers of surveillance can converge in targeting media actors.

Breaking the cycle of surveillance abuse

The study concludes with a series of recommendations to tackle "a systemic infrastructure of control" and the need for collective advocacy including transparency in spyware exports and accountability in its use, investment in regional forensic capacity, digital safety training for journalists, and safeguarding encryption and anonymity as fundamental press freedom rights.

The study was authored by Samar Al Halal, a computer and communication engineer and digital security and digital rights expert, and commissioned by the IFJ as part of its contribution to the Brave Media project, a global consortium led by BBC Media Action and aimed at uncovering surveillance against journalists worldwide.

"Surveillance is the weapon used to kill freedom of expression quietly. When journalists are watched, sources disappear, investigations stop, and self-censorship becomes normal. When sources know journalists are monitored, they stop talking. When reporters self-censor to stay safe, the public loses access to truth. The public doesn't just lose information, it loses the ability to hold power accountable." noted Samar Al Halal."When surveillance becomes normal, democracy turns into a show, it is seen, yes, but it's no longer real."