The right to privacy in the digital ageThe General Assembly,Reaffirmingthe purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations,Reaffirming alsothe human rights and fundamental freedoms enshrined in theUniversal Declaration of Human Rights and relevant international human rightstreaties, including the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and theInternational Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights,Reaffirming furtherthe Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action,Notingthat the rapid pace of technological development enables individuals allover the world to use new information and communication technologies and at thesame time enhances the capacity of Governments, companies and individuals toundertake surveillance, interception and data collection, which may violate or abusehuman rights, in particular the right to privacy, as set out in article 12 of theUniversal Declaration of Human Rights and article 17 of the International Covenanton Civil and Political Rights, and is therefore an issue of increasing concern,Reaffirmingthe human right to privacy, according to which no one shall besubjected to arbitrary or unlawful interference with his/her privacy, family, home orcorrespondence, and the right to the protection of the law against such interferences ,and recognizing that the exercise of the right to privacy is important for therealization of the right to freedom of expression and to hold opinions withoutinterference, and one of the foundations of a democratic society,Stressingthe importance of the full respect for the freedom to seek, receiveand impart information, including the fundamental importance of access toinformation and democratic participation,

Welcomingthe report of the Special Rapporteur on the promotion andprotection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression,1submitted to theHuman Rights Council at its twenty-third session, on the implications of States’surveillance of communications on the exercise of the human rights to privacy andto freedom of opinion and expression,Emphasizingthat unlawful or arbitrary surveillance and/or interception ofcommunications, as well as unlawful or arbitrary collection of personal data, ashighly intrusive acts, violate the rights to privacy and freedom of expression andmay contradict the tenets of a democratic society,Notingthat while concerns about public security may justify the gathering andprotection of certain sensitive information, States must ensure full com pliance withtheir obligations under international human rights law,Deeply concernedat the negative impact that surveillance and/or interceptionof communications, including extraterritorial surve illance and/or interception ofcommunications, as well as the collection of personal data, in particular whencarried out on a mass scale, may have on the exercise and enjoyment of humanrights,Reaffirmingthat States must ensure that any measures taken to combatterrorism complies with their obligations under international law, in particularinternational human rights, refugee and humanitarian law,1.Reaffirmsthe right to privacy, according to which no one shall besubjected to arbitrary or unlawful interference with his/her privacy, family, home orcorrespondence, and the right to the protection of the law against such interference,as set out in article 12 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and article 17of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights;2.Recognizesthe global and open nature of the Internet and the rapidadvancement in information and communication technologies as a driving force inaccelerating progress towards development in its various forms;3.Affirmsthat the same rights that people have offline must also beprotected online, including the right to privacy;4.Calls uponall States:

(a) To respect and protect the right to privacy, including in the context ofdigital communication;(b) To take measures to put an end to violations of those rights and to createthe conditions to prevent such violations, including by ensuring that relevantnational legislation complies with their obligations under international humanrights law;(c) To review their procedures, practices and legislation regarding thesurveillance of communications, their interception and collection of personal data,including mass surveillance, interception and collection, with a view to upholdingthe right to privacy by ensuring the full and effective implementation of all theirobligations under international human rights law;

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(d) To establish or maintain existing independent, effective domesticoversight mechanisms capable of ensuring transparency, as appropriate, andaccountability for State surveillance of communications, their interception andcollection of personal data;5.Requeststhe United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights topresent a report on the protection and promotion of the right to privacy in thecontext of domestic and extraterritorial surveillance and/or interception of digitalcommunications and collection of personal data, including on a mass scale to theHuman Rights Council, at its twenty-seventh session, and to the General Assemblyat its sixty-ninth session, with views and recommendations, to be considered byMember States;6.Decidesto examine the question at its sixty-ninth session, under the sub-item entitled “Human rights questions, including alternative approaches forimproving the effective enjoyment of human rights and fundamental freedoms” ofthe item entitled “Promotion and protection of human rights”.

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