Wolfie Christl is a public-interest technologist, researcher, policy analyst, and digital rights activist. A communication engineer by profession, he studied (but did not complete degrees in) sociology and computer science. Until 2006, he was part of Public Netbase, a digital art platform and early hackerspace in Vienna. In 2012, he co-founded Cracked Labs, an Austrian nonprofit dedicated to examining the societal impacts of information technology. His research focuses on consumer surveillance, algorithmic decision-making, the power of tech platforms and the datafication of work.
He has published several reports on today’s personal data industry, web and mobile tracking, digital profiling, the national security implications of digital advertising, employee surveillance and algorithmic control in the workplace. Recently, he helped expose how states and malicious actors misuse data from digital advertising and consumer apps for surveillance purposes. He contributed to investigations by civil society groups, consumer protection associations, trade unions, media outlets, law firms and data protection authorities. His research has been taken up by policymakers across the world and led to GDPR complaints and lawsuits against unlawful data practices. His work has been featured in the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Financial Times, The Guardian and many other media outlets.