Israel · founded n/a · The Israel Defense Forces' signals-intelligence unit, part of military intelligence. The sources opened do not give a founding year.
Episode: CLASSIFIED — COMING SOON
Section: Israel
Case files (2): Unit 8200 reservists’ refusal letter · Unit 8200 and Microsoft Azure: reported call-surveillance system
Reservists who served in the unit wrote that they refuse to take part in actions against Palestinians. The Guardian counted 34 signers and JTA 43; the IDF called it exploitation of military service to express a political position. The letter's claims about how intelligence is used are the signers' own.
The Guardian: Israeli intelligence veterans' letter in full ↗
The Guardian reported with Israeli-Palestinian media partners that the unit stored recordings of Palestinians' phone calls on Microsoft's Azure cloud. Microsoft's Brad Smith later said it had 'ceased and disabled a set of services to a unit within the Israel ministry of defense'. The IDF said Microsoft 'is not and has not been working with the IDF on the storage or processing of data'.
The Guardian: Microsoft and Israeli military phone calls ↗
The Guardian: Microsoft blocks Israel's use of its technology ↗