For Many, the Arab Spring Isn't Over
Ten years ago today, Egyptians took to the streets to topple a dictator who had clung to power for nearly three decades. January 25th remains one of the most important dates of the Arab Spring, a series of massive, civilian-led protests and uprisings that spread across the Middle East and...
Twitter and Interoperability: Some Thoughts From the Peanut Gallery
Late in 2019, Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey floated "Project Blue Sky," a plan for an interoperable, federated, standardized Twitter that would let users (or toolsmiths who work on behalf of users) gain more control over their participation in the Twitter system. This was an exciting moment for us, a...
Facial Recognition and Coded Bias: Online Conversation With EFF's Associate Director of Community Organizing and the Coded Bias Team
On Wednesday, January 27, EFF Associate Director of Community Organizing, Nathan 'nash' Sheard (he/ze), will take part in a live Q&A on Twitter with the team behind Coded Bias, a revelatory documentary that exposes the ways that AI systems have developed algorithms that can infringe on our privacy...
EFF’s Top Recommendations for the Biden Administration
At noon on January 20, 2021, Joseph R. Biden, Jr. was sworn in as the 46th President of the United States, and he and his staff took over the business of running the country.The tradition of a peaceful transfer of power is as old as the United States itself. But...
Political Satire Is Protected Speech – Even If You Don’t Get the Joke
This blog post was co-written by EFF Legal Fellow Houston Davidson.Should an obviously fake Facebook post—one made as political satire—end with a lawsuit and a bill to pay for a police response to the post? Of course not, and that’s why EFF filed an amicus brief in Lafayette...
Blyncsy’s Patent On Contact Tracing Isn’t A Medical Breakthrough, It’s A Patent Breakdown
Stupid Patent of the MonthContact tracing is critical for limiting the spread of a contagion like COVID-19, but that doesn’t mean it’s inventive to compare people’s locations using their smartphones. Rather, it’s all the more important to protect the basic methods of public health from bogus patent claims.The CDC ...
Oakland’s Progressive Fight to Protect Residents from Government Surveillance
The City of Oakland, California, has once again raised the bar on community control of police surveillance. Last week, Oakland's City Council voted unanimously to strengthen the city's already groundbreaking Surveillance and Community Safety Ordinance. The latest amendment, which immediately went into effect, adds prohibitions on Oakland's Police...
Why EFF Doesn’t Support Bans On Private Use of Face Recognition
Government and private use of face recognition technology each present a wealth of concerns. Privacy, safety, and amplification of carceral bias are just some of the reasons why we must ban government use.But what about private use? It also can exacerbate injustice, including its use by police contractors, retail...
New OCC Rule Is a Win in the Fight Against Financial Censorship
On Thursday, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency finalized its Fair Access to Financial Services rule, which will prevent banks from refusing to serve entire classes of customers that they find politically or morally unsavory. The rule is a huge win for civil liberties, and for the...
So-called “Consent Searches” Harm Our Digital Rights
Imagine this scenario: You’re driving home. Police pull you over, allegedly for a traffic violation. After you provide your license and registration, the officer catches you off guard by asking: “Since you’ve got nothing to hide, you don’t mind unlocking your phone for me, do you?” Of course, you don’t...
