EFF, ACLU and EPIC File Amicus Brief Challenging Warrantless Cell Phone Search, Retention, and Subsequent Search
Last week, EFF—along with the ACLU and EPIC—filed an amicus brief in the Wisconsin Supreme Court challenging a series of warrantless digital searches and seizures by state law enforcement officers: the search of a person’s entire cell phone, the retention of a copy of the data on the phone,...
Washington: Everyone Deserves Reliable Internet
The coronavirus pandemic, its related stay-at-home orders, and its economic and social impacts have illustrated how important robust broadband service is to everything from home-based work to education. Yet, even now, many communities across America have been unable to meet their residents’ telecommunication needs. This is because of two problems:...
The FBI Should Stop Attacking Encryption and Tell Congress About All the Encrypted Phones It’s Already Hacking Into
Federal law enforcement has been asking for a backdoor to read Americans’ encrypted communications for years now. FBI Director Christopher Wray did it again last week in testimony to the Senate Judiciary Committee. As usual, the FBI’s complaints involved end-to-end encryption employed by popular messaging platforms, as well...
Why You Can’t Sue Your Broadband Monopoly
Metallica and Twitch Are in the Copyright News Again
Sometimes, time is truly a flat circle. The band Metallica played live for the gaming convention BlizzCon. The convention, as is de rigueur in the pandemic, was online. So the performance was livestreamed. That’s when things got weird.On Blizzard’s Twitch and YouTube channels, the music was transmitted live, with no...
Google’s FLoC Is a Terrible Idea
Update, April 9, 2021 : We've launched Am I FLoCed, a new site that will tell you whether your Chrome browser has been turned into a guinea pig for Federated Learning of Cohorts or FLoC, Google’s latest targeted advertising experiment. The third-party cookie is dying, and Google is trying...
The Justice in Policing Act Does Not Do Enough to Rein in Body-Worn Cameras
Reformers often tout police use of body-worn cameras (BWCs) as a way to prevent law enforcement misconduct. But, far too often, this technology becomes one more tool in a toolbox already overflowing with surveillance technology that spies on civilians. Worse, because police often control when BWCs are turned on and...
Officials in Baltimore and St. Louis Put the Brakes on Persistent Surveillance Systems Spy Planes
Baltimore, MD and St. Louis, MO, have a lot in common. Both cities suffer from declining populations and high crime rates. In recent years, the predominantly Black population in each city has engaged in collective action opposing police violence. In recent weeks, officials in both cities voted unanimously to...
What the AT&T Breakup Teaches Us About a Big Tech Breakup
The multi-pronged attempt by state Attorneys General, the Department of Justice, and the Federal Trade Commission to find Google and Facebook liable for violating antitrust law may result in breaking up these giant companies. But in order for any of this to cause lasting change,...
Federal Court Agrees: Prosecutors Can’t Keep Forensic Evidence Secret from Defendants
When the government tries to convict you of a crime, you have a right to challenge its evidence. This is a fundamental principle of due process, yet prosecutors and technology vendors have routinely argued against disclosing how forensic technology works.For the first time, a federal court has ruled on...







