“Phone is company” — How the authorities routinely and forcibly remove the phones of people on the move on Samos, Greece
A new report by I Have Rights (IHR) and the Border Violence Monitoring Network (BVMN) details testimonies from 59 people on the move who report that the Greek authorities routinely and forcibly removed their phones upon arrival to Samos. The operation takes place without any clear legal basis and has a severe impact on the wellbeing of many of the people affected.
According to multiple reports by people on the move, the forcible removal of phones upon arrival to Samos is routine. Almost all respondents in possession of a phone at the time reported having it removed by the Hellenic Police or individuals in uniform.
Reports suggest that the authorities remove the phones before the person arrives at the Samos Closed Controlled Access Centre (CCAC, the prison-like facility that serves as asylum seekers accommodation since September 2021). This removal takes place either in a forested area of the island, inside police vehicles during transfer to the CCAC, or upon entering the CCAC. In many cases, people reported they were instructed to share their passwords or unlock the phone in front of the authorities before handing it over. Moreover, the persons affected reported that they did not receive any information regarding the reasons for the removal.
“They were only shouting, no explanation, they said ‘put your phone, I shouldn’t find any in your stuff, if I do it would be the worst thing for you.”
“They [the police] were really pushy, you could not say no. When they arrived they were screaming and giving orders, as if we were arrested.”
While all respondents reported their phone was eventually returned to them, the authorities reportedly kept the devices for anything from a few hours up to two weeks. Upon return, some of the respondents reported observing changes to their phones, such as a change in battery, the device newly being connected to the WiFi, the photo gallery and messenger applications being opened, or photos having been deleted from the gallery. One respondent said the phone “felt heavier to use, the system was slower”, and another person reported a new issue with the USB port. One respondent reported seeing the Hellenic Police examine their device.
The legal basis for the asylum seekers’ removal of and possible access to phones remains unclear. When IHR asked the Hellenic Police and the EU Border Agency Frontex to clarify the legality of the practice, contradictory responses were given. The Hellenic Police denied removing people on the moves’ phones on the island. On the other hand, the Frontex Fundamental Rights Monitor informed IHR that the removal of phones is prescribed in the Operation Plan, a confidential binding agreement between Frontex and Greece, and is covered by national law, noting that in such cases unauthorized entry is treated as an in flagrante delicto crime — caught in the act of committing the offense.
Under national and EU law, confiscation requires specific suspicion, however as nearly every respondent with a phone reported having it taken upon arrival, it appears that phones are removed systematically and indiscriminately. This raises doubts as to the proportionality of the practice and its conformity with the right to privacy as enshrined by Article 8 of the ECHR. It is also unclear whether criminal law safeguards, such as the written form and information provided to the suspect, are met when phones are removed on Samos. These concerns are exacerbated by the fact that none of the respondents were lawfully informed about the reasons for the removal of their phones, and the denial of the practice by the responsible authorities.
As the Hellenic Police deny the practice of phone removal on Samos, it is not publicly known what the authorities do with the phones after confiscation, nor the ultimate purpose of the removal. Despite this, many suspect that phones are removed by the authorities to gather data about people’s journeys to Samos, such as information about the routes taken. The authorities may also be seeking to identify actors involved in a person’s journey to Samos. As one respondent reported:
“For one of my friends, her phone was broken. For another person it took three days, he/she went to ask for the phone many times. If there were some photos from the captain or people on the boat, they would take the person and the phone at the same time […] The one who gave back the phone was a police officer. They called our names and gave back the phone.”
The practice of the removal of phones has a severe impact on many of the people affected. Despite the CCAC being equipped with extensive surveillance technologies, including 24/7 CCTV cameras, drones, and biometric systems like regular fingerprint scanning, most individuals interviewed reported that the confiscation of their phones was the most invasive and unsettling use of technology on Samos. More than half (54%) of the respondents reported feeling fear or anxiety about the potential analysis of their phone contents and the invasion of their privacy, as well as the difficulty it poses to be in touch with loved ones.
“It tortures your mind. Maybe I will be sent back to Turkey or to my country, that is torture.”
The practice also results in people being deprived of their phones throughout the initial days in the Samos CCAC during which asylum seekers regularly get de facto detained, which exacerbates their isolation, heightens their vulnerability to human rights violations, limits their ability to gather evidence on potential mistreatment and obstructs their access to critical resources, including important information and medical or legal support.
For more information on the use of technology on Samos, see IHR and BVMN’s full report: “Controlled and Confined: Unveiling the Impact of Tech-Driven Control in the Samos CCAC”.
Authors:
Dimitra Theotoki and Noa Paul
Litigation and border technology researchers at I Have Rights.
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