The use of digital surveillance technologies in the migration control has received more and more of a second wave of popularity that does not only provide chances of strengthening border security but also harbours attitudes towards the breach of human rights. This paper examines the controversial use of digital surveillance technology, referred to as biometric identification, artificial intelligence in surveillance, and computer-based decision-making, and is applied in migration control. The study consists of several elements of case analysis, document examination, interviews with stakeholders, and the utilization of a thematic examination; thus, the research pinpoints the most crucial ethical issues, such as information privacy breaches, racial profiling, AI-based bias, and the undermining of asylum procedures. The paper recommends a close imbalance between humans play a key role in technological change and the aspect of human rights since this paper contends that stringent control measures, transparency, and accountability are required in the deployment of surveillance technologies. The overall results indicate that although the stakeholders recognize that digital surveillance has a lot to offer in improving security, there is much opposition based on the effects it has on the rights of the individuals, especially to the marginalized migrant communities. To prevent the use of technology in order to preserve dignity, fairness, and equality toward all migrants, the research proposes the introduction of human rights-based approach to digital surveillance in migration that takes place during the control of migration. References Aitken, R., & Lopez, M. (2022). Privacy and security in the digital age: The impact of biometric surveillance. Journal of Information Privacy and Security, 29(2), 124–138. Anderson, C., & Denham, L. (2021). Border control and surveillance: The evolving role of technology in migration management. Migration Studies, 29(4), 515–533. https://doi.org/10.1093/migration/mnab009 Anderson, P., & Denham, L. (2023). Public engagement with digital surveillance: The ethical challenges of migration technologies. Journal of Digital Ethics, 8(1), 35–50. https://doi.org/10.4337/jde.2023.01.03 Asif, M. (2022). Integration of Information Technology in Financial Services and its Adoption by the Financial Sector in Pakistan. Inverge Journal of Social Sciences, 1(2), 23-35. https://doi.org/10.63544/ijss.v1i2.31 Barker, T., & Ali, S. (2021). The ethics of automation in asylum decision-making: Challenges and solutions. Human Rights and Technology, 12(4), 97–110. https://doi.org/10.4337/hrit.2021.04.02 Bhui, K., Gibbons, R., & Harris, D. (2021). Racial bias in AI systems: Ethical implications for migration and border control. Ethical AI Review, 14(4), 45–58. Bhui, R., & Verma, P. (2022). AI and racial profiling: The intersection of technology and ethics in border control systems. Journal of Migration Technology, 19(3), 62–74. Binns, R., & Horne, S. (2021). Ethical concerns in migration control: A technological perspective. International Journal of Human Rights, 25(3), 489–503. https://doi.org/10.1080/13642987.2020.1863756 Bradley, M., & Shaw, D. (2022). AI and the future of border control: A critical examination. Journal of Migration and Technology, 34(3), 265–281. Brown, M. (2023). Racial bias in AI surveillance systems: Impact on migration control. Journal of Social Justice and Technology, 16(2), 118–131. Bukhari, S. T., Rafiq-uz-Zaman, M., & Hassan, B. (2025). The intersection of age, marital status, and abusive dynamics in females: A sociocultural perspective. The Critical Review of Social Sciences Studies, 3(2), 1071–1088. https://doi.org/10.59075/3djj2365 Chavez, R., & Ross, J. (2022). Lack of oversight in migration surveillance: A global perspective. Human Rights Review, 21(2), 145–162. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12142-021-00640-2 Cheung, T., & Finkelstein, R. (2022). The automation of asylum claims: Ethical implications for refugees. International Migration Review, 45(1), 77–89. https://doi.org/10.1177/01979183211040547 Cohen, J., Green, L., & Nash, P. (2023). Ethical governance of surveillance technologies in migration: A global perspective. Global Policy Review, 30(1), 67–80. De Genova, N., & Peutz, N. (2020). The ethics of migration control: Law, politics, and technology. Routledge. Duffy, R., & Freeman, L. (2022). A human rights-based approach to border technology governance. International Journal of Human Rights, 29(6), 303–320. Eubanks, V. (2020). Automating inequality: How high-tech tools profile, police, and punish the poor. St. Martin’s Press. (ISBN: 978-1-250-07431-7) Friedman, A. (2022). Digital borders: The privacy implications of surveillance technologies in migration control. Privacy Law and Policy Journal, 28(4), 183–200. Friedman, G. (2022). Biometrics and privacy: A clash of rights in migration management. Privacy and Data Security, 27(3), 213–230. Gibson, D., Miller, C., & Park, S. (2022). AI in border control: The racialized nature of facial recognition technology. Data Justice, 3(1), 33–50. https://doi.org/10.31219/osf.io/8xz7f Gillespie, J. (2020). Digital surveillance and the future of border security. Borderlands: A Journal of Borderlands Studies, 19(1), 49–67. https://doi.org/10.1080/17471808.2020.1790312 Graham, S. (2023). The politics of migration control in the age of artificial intelligence. Policy Studies Journal, 44(2), 168–189. https://doi.org/10.1111/psj.12475 Greenberg, R. (2023). Transparency and accountability in migration control technologies. Policy and Governance, 11(4), 245–261. Hall, D., & Kunkel, T. (2023). Migration, privacy, and human rights in the age of surveillance. Social Justice Review, 16(1), 122–139. Harrison, R. (2021). The risks of AI in immigration control: Racial profiling and bias. Journal of Racial and Ethnic Studies, 42(5), 501–518. https://doi.org/10.1080/01419870.2020.1825756 Human Rights Watch. (2021). The erosion of asylum rights in the digital age. Retrieved from https://www.hrw.org/report Jackson, M., & Thompson, E. (2021). Privacy issues in migration surveillance: Who owns migrant data? Data Privacy Journal, 19(2), 198–213. Klein, H. (2021). The lack of accountability in AI-driven migration control. Migration Studies Review, 28(6), 341–358. Kumar, R., & Patel, A. (2021). Human rights in the digital age: Protecting migrants through regulation. International Law and Technology, 33(7), 122–135. Lange, S., & Silver, L. (2022). Facial recognition technology and its impact on racial discrimination at borders. Journal of Technology and Society, 38(9), 265–281. Liebig, T., & Wahl, H. (2022). The automated asylum process: A violation of fair trial rights? Human Rights Law Review, 45(2), 221–234. https://doi.org/10.1093/hrlr/ngab022 Lind, P., & Greenberg, R. (2021). Technology and migration governance: The ethical questions. International Migration, 54(3), 67–84. https://doi.org/10.1111/imig.12815 López, A., & Sánchez, P. (2023). The erosion of asylum rights through automation: A critical examination of AI’s role in refugee protection. International Migration Law, 38(2), 125–141. Lyon, D. (2020). The culture of surveillance: Watching as a way of life. Polity Press. MacDonald, A., & Fernandes, M. (2021). Surveillance, privacy, and the digital border: A global challenge. Journal of Borderland Studies, 39(6), 342–355. https://doi.org/10.1080/08865655.2021.1995678 Mayer, C. (2023). Who watches the watchers? Accountability in migration surveillance. Journal of Global Governance, 13(5), 81–97. Mayer, J., & Fischer, G. (2022). Balancing security and human rights in migration governance: The role of digital technologies. Journal of Migration Policy, 22(5), 89–106. Müller, M., & Bliesemann de Guevara, B. (2021). Migration, border control, and the politics of surveillance: The case of the Mediterranean. Global Politics Review, 22(2), 115–133. Nissenbaum, H. (2022). Privacy in context: Technology, policy, and the integrity of social life. Stanford University Press. Nissilä, M., & Määttä, K. (2022). AI in asylum decision-making: Unintended consequences and ethical considerations. International Refugee Studies, 17(3), 79–92. O’Neil, C. (2021). Weapons of Math Destruction: How Big Data Increases Inequality and Threatens Democracy. Crown Publishing. Pasquale, F. (2019). The Black Box Society: The Secret Algorithms that Control Money and Information. Harvard University Press. Pemberton, A. (2023). Digital surveillance and its role in managing migration. Migration Studies Review, 20(1), 28–42. Rafiq-uz-Zaman, M. (2025). Empowering the excluded: A review of skill-based education for eunuchs in South Asia. Global Political Review, X(III), 60–69. https://doi.org/10.31703/gpr.2025(XIII).06 Rafiq-uz-Zaman, M. (2025). The integrated skill-based education framework (ISEF): An empirically grounded model for reforming skill-based education in Pakistan. Global Social Sciences Review, X(III), 157–167. https://doi.org/10.31703/gssr.2025(X-III).14 Rafiq-uz-Zaman, M., & Ashraf, I. (2025). Academic needs of madaris in 21st century: A study of madaris in Tehsil Minchinabad, District Bahawalnagar, South Punjab. Inverge Journal of Social Sciences, 4(1), 122–131. https://doi.org/10.63544/ijss.v4i1.141 Rafiq-uz-Zaman, M., Khalid, N., & Shafi, S. (2024). Historical analysis of environmental degradation in Pakistan: A narrative review. Global Political Review, IX(IV), 24–35. https://doi.org/10.31703/gpr.2024(IX-IV).03 Rafiq-uz-Zaman, M., Khalid, N., & Susanto, E. (2025). Addressing environmental and social challenges: A mixed-method study on the education and inclusion of eunuchs in South Punjab, Pakistan. Social Science Review Archives, 3(1), 284–299. https://doi.org/10.70670/sra.v3i1.311 Robinson, C., & Clark, G. (2021). Digital surveillance in border management: Ethical implications and policy considerations. Policy Studies Journal, 49(2), 302–320. https://doi.org/10.1111/psj.12415 Robinson, S., Warren, B., & Sharpe, C. (2021). The accountability gap: Oversight and transparency in digital surveillance for migration control. Human Rights and Technology, 18(6), 115–128. Santos, S. (2022). Racial profiling and digital surveillance: The impact on migrant communities. Race and Technology, 19(4), 376–394. Zeng, H. (2021). Consent and data privacy in the era of digital surveillance. Journal of Information Technology, 39(3), 212–225. https://doi.org/10.1057/s41265-021-00167-x Ziegler, D., & Boström, A. (2022). Asylum seekers and AI: The challenge of automation in refugee protection systems. Law and Technology Review, 11(4), 234–247. Zimmerman, E. (2022). The security paradox: Digital surveillance and migration rights. Journal of Information Policy, 19(4), 175–189. https://doi.org/10.5325/jinfopoli.19.2022.0175 Zuboff, S. (2019). The age of surveillance capitalism: The fight for a human future at the new frontier of power. Public Affairs.
Manan et al. (Wed,) studied this question.