Tech giant blocks some Israeli military use of Azure after reports reveal spying on millions of Palestinians.
Microsoft has disabled a set of cloud computing and AI services for a unit within the Israeli Ministry of Defence, citing violations of the company’s terms of service. The move follows a joint investigation by The Guardian, +972 Magazine, and Hebrew outlet Local Call, which revealed that Israel’s Unit 8200 allegedly used Microsoft Azure to store and analyze sensitive intelligence collected through mass surveillance of Palestinians.
The investigation detailed how, since 2022, Unit 8200—Israel’s elite cyber warfare unit—leveraged Azure’s vast storage capacity and computing power to collect, review, and process phone call data from millions of Palestinians in Gaza and the occupied West Bank. Sources said the system also informed air strike operations, while most of the data was reportedly stored on Microsoft servers in the Netherlands and Ireland.
In a blog post, Microsoft Vice Chair Brad Smith emphasized two principles guiding the decision: “We do not provide technology to facilitate mass surveillance of civilians… and we respect and protect the privacy rights of our customers.” He confirmed that some Israeli Defence Ministry subscriptions—including specific cloud storage and AI services—had been cancelled.
The revelations come amid reports that the Israeli military’s use of Microsoft products surged after the Hamas-led attacks in October 2023 and the onset of the Gaza war. Microsoft previously acknowledged selling advanced AI and cloud computing tools to assist in locating hostages but stated an internal review found no evidence these services were used to target civilians.
Following the August investigation, Microsoft launched a second review by an outside law firm, which has already uncovered evidence that some products were used in ways that violate company policies. While some employees hailed the move as a step forward, activists note that most contracts with the Israeli military remain active, with only a small subset of services disabled for a single unit.
This latest development highlights growing scrutiny over tech companies’ role in warfare and surveillance, underscoring the complex ethical challenges of cloud computing and AI in military operations.