World Cup supporters under close surveillance?

• According to several Internet users and supporters present in Qatar for the World Cup, each person is closely monitored upon arrival in the country.

• Thousands of cameras, some equipped with facial recognition, as well as drones were deployed on site to secure the tournament.

• Concerns also exist over the tracking of supporters through two apps that are mandatory to download to travel to the country.

  The Cnil also recommends being very vigilant and leaving with a blank mobile phone.

“Be ready, in Qatar you won't have any freedom!

exclaims a surfer.

"You will be watched and stalked everywhere and all the time," says another.

“Your faces will be identified as soon as you get off the plane,” some say.

The organization of this World Cup is definitely at the center of all the debates.

For some, on-site surveillance is everywhere, all the time.

According to several publications: “All calls, SMS are checked by experts who can speak several languages.

Several thousand cameras and drones will be operational from November 15 and this is to monitor any violation of the rules imposed.

What is this information about surveillance and security in Qatar really about?

takes stock.

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Obviously, to organize such a competition and receive the supporters, it is necessary to set up an important security device.

France will also have to do the same for the 2024 Olympic Games. For a country such as Qatar, where the rules are very strict and tourism is underdeveloped, this is a major challenge.

The Qatari authorities have thus embarked on the Stadia project, carried out with Interpol since 2012, which aims to improve the security of major sporting events.

Thousands of soldiers around the world

Qatar is under close surveillance during this month of competition, with a system largely resulting from ten years of work with Interpol.

Thus, the training of at least 32,000 government security agents and 17,000 private sector agents has been announced.

All are prepared for all eventualities, as evidenced by several training videos.

Qatar has also signed security agreements with several countries to set up the Cup system.

France has dispatched 220 gendarmes on the spot.

They are essentially there to ensure the safety of French supporters according to the Ministry of the Interior.

Several other countries such as Turkey, Pakistan, and Morocco have provided members of the anti-riot forces, soldiers, explosives sniffer dogs, etc. As for the high military and anti-terrorist security, it is essentially supported by United States and United Kingdom.

This actually makes for a good number of security and surveillance personnel on site.

Drones, facial recognition…

Beyond the intervention forces, Qatar has made a point of honor on prevention.

The objective for the host country is to identify potential disruptors and dangers before they arise.

For this, the emphasis was placed on new technologies.

No less than 150,000 cameras have been installed in public places, 15,000 of which are equipped with facial recognition.

In Russia, only 500 were equipped with this technology.

One of the novelties developed aims to analyze crowds and their behavior during the World Cup, in order to "monitor and detect specific security threats, in real time via the network of surveillance cameras", affirms the University of Qatar on its website.

The latter also announced that it has developed a drone capable of counting the number of people present in an area, detecting abnormal events and identifying targeted people using facial recognition.

Indeed, all these technologies make it possible to “control any violation of the rules imposed”, as some Internet users mention it.

For example, the Lusail stadium, which is the largest with a capacity of 80,000 seats, has more than 3,800 surveillance cameras.

According to the committee in charge of world security, it also has two advanced surveillance operations centers.

Two intrusive mobile apps

Internet users also suspect that the Qatari authorities are scrutinizing the online activities of people present there.

And this would go through the two applications that it is mandatory to install.

There is indeed Ehteraz, which is the equivalent of the French TousAntiCovid.

This requires authorization for permanent access to the location, in order to monitor Covid-19.

But according to experts, it is not the most problematic application.

The second, and the one that worries the most, is Hayya.

It allows you to obtain your "fan ID", ie the residence permit for the duration of the competition, and thus to access the stadiums and free transport.

Other features that aim to "enhance" the on-site experience are available.

When installing it on your smartphone, you are indeed asked to “always use geolocation”.

When digging into the privacy policy, the list of information collected is long: name, date of birth, nationality, place of residence in Qatar, date of arrival, means of arrival, date of departure, telephone number , email address, passport information, itinerary, IP address, downloading cookies to your device…

The CNIL recommends a blank smartphone

Lots of information collected, yes, but why?

It is specified that it may be disclosed to "third parties, the judiciary and/or regulatory authorities or law enforcement agencies in the context of investigations", and "to ensure the safety and tournament security.

Also “taking measures in relation to actual or suspected illegal activities, fraud, emergency situations involving potential threats to the physical integrity of any person”.

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Thus, the National Commission for Computing and Liberties (CNIL) recommends several precautions.

Fans who will travel to Qatar are invited to install the Hayya application at the very last moment before departure, and to delete it as soon as they return to France.

They should also be careful to limit system permissions to those strictly necessary.

The Cnil even recommends traveling with a “virgin smartphone”, that is to say one containing no personal data.

"Special vigilance will be required for photos, videos, or digital works which could place you in difficulty vis-à-vis the legislation of the country visited", underlines the Commission.

Because, if there was still need to specify it, France is much more tolerant and has more freedoms than Qatar.

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