Freedom of expression groups are criticizing a controversial new proposal in Turkey that they believe will create the world’s largest social media ID matching database, eliminating any semblance of online privacy.
The Freedom of Expression Association (İFÖD) has said that the proposal will create a “digital panopticon,” or a central surveillance system that would monitor all user activity with full knowledge of the identity behind every account, tweet or post.
The new law, originally proposed in February, will require Turkish identification number log-ins and ban fake or anonymous accounts following a three-month transition period. Social media companies have agreed to these terms, according to the minister. The government has also been simultaneously working on a measure that would ban social media for children under 16-years-old.
The new legislation is expected to be introduced as part of a sweeping judicial reform package that the government has been working on recently.
Same mechanism for age and ID checks
Dr. Yaman Akdeniz from İFÖD clarified that the same social media monitoring system would be used for both controlling user ages and monitoring online activity. He warned of serious privacy concerns and described this large-scale alias matching as unprecedented, although full details about the system are not yet written into law.
The system will function by generating a platform-specific digital token for each user after their initial government ID required log-in, according to the association. This token will carry a seal confirming the user is over 15-years-old. The same token will then be used to trace all account activity connected to their identity.
The government claims that only age information will be shared with social media platforms. İFÖD warns that this sleight of hand obscures the real issue — that the state will know the identity behind every account.
'A paralysis of civil society'
Activists and journalists could also be impacted by what İFÖD calls “a paralysis of civil society.” Any citizen tempted to criticize corruption or call for protests, boycotts or other forms of activism will know their account is directly linked to their identity. Fear of prosecution, profiling, or termination of employment could stifle all sorts of online activity, including even the liking and sharing of posts.
This is seemingly confirmed by Justice Minister Gürlek’s statement about the proposal where he referred to social media criticism as online “trials” and argued that those who do such “character assassinations" should be punished.
“Trials are being conducted, decisions are being made, and judgments are being passed on social media … If someone insults someone or carries out a character assassination on social media, they must bear the consequences,” Gürlek said.
Mass surveillance
The association argues that the proposals violate Articles 8 (right to privacy) and 10 (freedom of expression) of the European Convention on Human Rights, which Turkey is signed onto. Turkey is also a signatory of The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, which safeguards children’s rights to access information, freedom of expression and development. This also contradicts the age restriction proposal.
Akdeniz described the “protection of children” argument as a “trojan horse,” with the ultimate goal being to develop the central online surveillance system in question. He noted how other countries, like Australia, have left age-verification issues to the platforms themselves.
According to Akdeniz, social media companies have effectively been turned into “compliant apparatuses” of the state’s censorship and surveillance mechanism.
“Some users migrated to Bluesky, others use multiple platforms but the solution is not to find a safer or better platform. All platforms, small, medium or large will be affected by this system,” Akdeniz said.
X users in Turkey migrate to Bluesky amid censorship
According to an İFÖD report, Internet governance in Turkey has “transformed into a process of backroom bargaining and data exchange between platforms and the state.”
İFÖD believes that instead social media companies should be fulfilling critical obligations including establishing local representation, data localization, and mandatory transparency reporting in line with the higher transparency standards of the European Union (EU).
However, major social media companies have already “passed the stage of caring and respecting fundamental rights in Turkey,” Akdeniz added. (İK/VK)
