Digitalization in international human rights law: a good servant or a bad master?

Abstract

The increasing digitalization of international human rights law raises pressing questions about safeguarding fundamental rights amid rapid technological advances such as artificial intelligence. Secret surveillance by state bodies demonstrates the difficulty of protecting privacy in the digital age. Broader issues concern cyberspace: should it be treated as private property or as a shared resource, guaranteeing access to the internet for everyone. Balancing digital and non-digital communication is another unresolved challenge. The integration of AI into judicial processes further exposes tensions between automation and necessary human oversight.
Careful legal regulation is therefore essential to ensure that digital innovation strengthens, rather than undermines, human rights protection. This contribution examines the most significant challenges international human rights law currently faces in the era of digitalization and seeks to answer the question on whether the existing framework is sufficient or whether new sources of international law are required. The conclusion reached is that, despite profound technological developments—including the rise of the internet and AI—the current rules of international law remain adequate. The key lies in their proper interpretation, particularly through dynamic methods such as the “living instrument” doctrine applied in the case-law of the ECHR.