The impact of digitalization on the exercise of human rights and freedoms under a state of war

Abstract

This article analyzes the impact of the digitization of the information space on the realization of human rights and freedoms in the modern world. It examines the main opportunities and risks arising from the integration of digital technologies into social, economic, and political processes. It has been established that digital transformation is not limited to technological modernization but brings about changes in the mechanisms of interaction between the state, society, and the individual, directly affecting the conditions for the realization of fundamental human rights. The study highlights risks associated with restrictions on the diversity of available information, covert influence on people’s views and behavior, interference with privacy, the protection of personal data, digital inequality, and the potential for discrimination. It examines the importance of access to the Internet and digital infrastructure as prerequisites for the realization of human rights. Special attention is given to the specific aspects of digitalization under martial law in Ukraine. It has been established that digital technologies simultaneously ensure uninterrupted access to information, communications, and public services, while also increasing the dependence of the exercise of rights on the proper functioning of digital infrastructure. The study analyzed the need to strike a balance between the protection of human rights, digital accessibility, the security of the digital environment, and national security requirements. It examined the provisions of Ukrainian legislation and international approaches to safeguarding human rights in the digital environment. It is concluded that digitalization has a complex and contradictory impact on human rights and freedoms: while expanding the possibilities for their realization, it simultaneously creates new forms of potential restriction. The paper justifies the need to develop a human-centered and rights-based model of digital transformation, under which human rights must be taken into account when formulating digital policy, developing technologies, and establishing legal and institutional safeguards for their use. Keywords: human rights, transformation, digitalization, digital technologies, digital rights, internet access, digital security.