A/HRC/29/37 relations in human rights monitoring as there is a much wider community of human rights monitors at work than ever before. It also presents opportunities in contexts that might otherwise be closed to scrutiny. In circumstances where the physical presence of human rights investigators can be a challenge, the sensitive use of ICTs can help to avoid information austerity about situations that are of great interest to the human rights community. 40. However, the development of ICTs should not be viewed as an unqualified good in terms of the protection of human rights. Opportunities for States to carry out surveillance on and interfere in the work of civil society have multiplied in the digital space, and the Council should be vigilant concerning the dangers as well as the affordances of ICTs. 6 The use of technology by human rights activists and others can expose them to a range of risks, of which many may not be aware. 41. In order to fully realize the potential of ICTs for human rights work, it is necessary to address the issue of the digital divide in terms of both access and literacy. On the one hand, ICTs facilitate pluralism within human rights work, allowing amateurs to complement professionals; on the other hand, however, they can create new lines of inclusion and exclusion that often correspond with pre-existing barriers to access to resources and power, such as language, education, affluence or gender.7 Moreover, in addition to providing opportunities to speak, pluralism is also about being heard. Being heard by human rights fact-finders may depend on one’s ability to produce verifiable information, which can in turn be determined by one’s digital literacy and digital footprint. 8 The greater availability of digital information on human rights violations in one context or region may lead to such violations being prioritized over more egregious but less visible violations elsewhere. 42. It is clear that, if used sensibly, ICTs can enhance the protection of human rights, including the right to life. Various parts of the wider United Nations system have been investing significant time and resources into accommodating the affordances of ICTs into their methods of work. The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs and the Department of Peacekeeping Operations have been developing advanced techniques for crisis monitoring and mapping. The International Criminal Court has undertaken a review into the way it handles digital evidence. Nonetheless, it still seems that the full potential of these new tools has not been systematically investigated and internalized by the human rights community (see A/65/321, paras. 3–10). 43. In the present report, the Special Rapporteur considers how ICTs present, in particular, opportunities and challenges for the core modalities of human rights work, that is, promotion, protection and monitoring or fact-finding to ensure accountability should a violation occur. Although the impact of ICTs and social media on advocacy spaces has been explored elsewhere, it will be briefly discussed here, as will the role of technology in facilitating physical protection and the necessary security measures for safety in a digital environment, which are both significant from the perspective of the mandate. The Special Rapporteur will then address the question of using ICTs to collect information concerning 6 7 8 The Special Rapporteur notes that, at its twenty-eighth session, the Human Rights Council decided to appoint a special rapporteur on the right to privacy in the digital age. A. Trevor Thrall, Dominik Stecula and Diana Sweet, “May we have your attention please? Human rights NGOs and the problem of global communication”, International Journal of Press/Politics, vol. 19, No. 2 (April 2014), pp. 135–59. Ella McPherson, “Advocacy organizations’ evaluation of social media information for NGO journalism: the evidence and engagement models”, American Behavioral Scientist, vol. 59, No. 1 (July 2014), pp. 124–48. 7