The Right to Privacy, Contact Tracing, and Public Health During the COVID-19 Pandemic: The Israeli Case

To break COVID-19 infection chains, the Israeli government authorized the Israeli Security Agency (ISA) to assist the Ministry of Health in tracing individuals who were in the vicinity of confirmed COVID-19 cases. Israel was the only democracy that used its security services to reduce morbidity via a nonvoluntary digital tracing tool, which was challenged with respect to both its epidemiological added value and its compliance with human rights. The Israeli High Court of Justice confirmed the ISA’s authorization based on a majority opinion, holding that the concomitant restriction of individual rights, especially the right to privacy, was proportionate. Surveillance and epidemiological investigations are common practices aimed at controlling infectious disease transmission. However, in an effort to adhere to public health values, alternatives to a nonvoluntary tool should be sought to ensure both the protection of individual privacy and the promotion of public trust and well-being.