This year, it's drones featuring thermal imaging and robots handing out religious advice.A decade ago, it was all about the miracle of the mobile phone. And a century or so ago, the motor car was the highest of high-tech used during the annual Hajj pilgrimage.

The Hajj, one of the largest gatherings of humans on Earth, is meant to be undertaken by every adult Muslim once in their lifetime. It will begin in Saudi Arabia on June 4 and end June 9. During those days, up to 2 million pilgrims from over 180 countries will take part in a number of different religious ceremonies in Mecca.

But having so many people moving around in one comparatively small area has led to problems in the past. Thousands of pilgrims were killed in stampeding crowds in 1990 and 2015. Last year over 1,300 died due to extreme heat; pilgrims often walk up to 65 kilometers a day in 40-to-50 degrees Celsius heat. There have also been fires, protests, suicides, collapsing buildings and infectious diseases at the Hajj, as well as more everyday problems like people getting lost or having health problems.

No wonder then that the Saudi authorities are trying to use technology to improve how they control crowds and cater to their visitors. This year, Saudi Arabia will use drones with thermal imaging as well as artificial intelligence and facial recognition technology to ensure that only those who have Hajj permits are allowed in.

Last year's many deaths were mostly of pilgrims who didn't have official permission to be there and therefore couldn't access services like air-conditioned shelter in the extreme heat.

Can high-tech boost safety?

To avoid overcrowding, Saudi Arabia's Nusuk website, also a mobile phone application, allows attendees to register to enter certain areas at allotted times. The Nusuk system includes an electronic identity card and a smart wristband, which hold information on the user's identity, travel plans, finances, health and accommodation, among other things. The Nusuk card must be carried throughout the pilgrimage and is used to access transport and other services. Some of the wristbands have location tracking, monitor the wearer's blood oxygen levels and heart rate, and can even be used to call for medical help.

Other technological advances at this year's Hajj include robots to guide visitors around religious sites and to hand out water, Korans or offer advice in 11 languages. There are also newly paved, more reflective (and therefore cooler) streets, paths that minimize vibration for walking comfort, and a special white pilgrim's gown made from futuristic fabric that keeps the wearer up to 2 degrees Celsius cooler.

All the technology, surveillance and advanced algorithmic calculation is meant to make the event safer and the chance of tragic accidents less likely. But as the amount of technology grows, so too do concerns about data privacy, state surveillance and potential cybercrime. 

"All of these technologies are mandatory and those who refuse them are not allowed to perform the pilgrimage," explains Zeinab Ismail, a researcher and editor at the Lebanon-based digital rights organization, SMEX. "All of this, combined with Saudi Arabia's personal data protection law, which only partially aligns with international standards and contains concerning provisions and loopholes, raises increasing concerns about the safety and privacy of pilgrims' data."

Saudi officials have argued that privacy concerns must outweigh safety at such a huge event.

"Regardless of the [Saudi government's] justification, what worries me the most — and irrespective of the technology itself — is the fact that this technology is being deployed in a country where rule of law is weak, there's no transparency and no [state] accountability," argues Marwa Fatafta, policy director for the Middle East and North Africa at international digital rights organization, Access Now.

It would be difficult to audit the technologies for problems and even harder for individuals to question their use, Fatafta told DW.

"For the people who are going to the Hajj pilgrimage, they're not in any position to push back and say, 'I don't want to give my biometric data'," she continued. "So just the general context means that the door is wide open for abuse."

'Contact us'?

Reading the Nusuk app's terms and conditions, information about how long pilgrims' personal data can be kept is vague and even contradictory. DW e-mailed Saudi Arabia's National Data Management Office and the supervising Saudi Data and AI Authority to ask for more information on this. Both organizations publish e-mail addresses for the public to use if they have questions or want to make a complaint. 

Two DW e-mails received no response. Another bounced back with the message: "Recipient's mailbox is full."

Since 2023, Saudi Arabia has had a personal data protection law — but as Ismail pointed out, "the current legal framework … allows legislation to be interpreted or manipulated in ways that may serve state interests over human rights."

It's not just potential misuse of millions of pilgrims' data by local authorities causing concern. Higher dependence on technology to monitor and control Hajj pilgrims also means more vulnerability in general, as there are more places for hackers to attack. And Saudi Arabia and other Gulf states are already some of the biggest victims of cybercrime. 

The first platform Saudi Arabia used for registering pilgrims, Motawif, was run by a private company and unexpectedly sent spam to users. The state-run Nusuk app replaced it in 2022. The following year, cybersecurity experts found data submitted to Nusuk for sale on illicit websites that deal in stolen personal data.

Less religion, more cyber

New technology has also brought another worry: Is all that high tech taking away from the once-in-a-lifetime spiritual relevance of the Hajj?

A 2018 study conducted by researchers at the University of Central Lancashire in the UK suggested it might be.

Pilgrims interviewed for the study complained about others taking selfies at holy sites, talking on the phone while performing rituals and behaving like tourists rather than pious visitors. "Smartphones are the fourth devil in Hajj," one interviewee said, referring to a ritual featuring three representations of the devil.

Some even complained all the technology was making the journey too easy.

Where once pilgrims walked between holy sites, now they ride a high-speed train. And where once they stayed in simple tents, now they're accommodated in 10,000 air-conditioned, fire-resistant tents.

"Since the Hajj has become 'high-tech,' the fundamental spirituality of the pilgrim's experience is arguably being transformed into something more akin to a 'cyber experience'," the UK researchers wrote. Traditionally the Hajj is meant to be all about simplicity, spiritual purity and contemplative worship, they explained.

As with every other kind of digital technology, high tech at the Hajj had its benefits and disadvantages, they concluded.

Edited by: Jess Smee