Celebrating Books on Building a Better Future
EFF is excited to spotlight two free book events this December that look ahead, providing insight on how to build this better future. Featuring EFF’s Executive Director Cindy Cohn, we’ll be exploring how stories, technology, and policy shape the world around us.
Victory! Court Ends Dragnet Electricity Surveillance Program in Sacramento
For more than a decade, the Sacramento Municipal Utility District coordinated with police to sift through the granular smart meter data of residents without suspicion to find evidence of cannabis growing.
How Cops Are Using Flock Safety's ALPR Network to Surveil Protesters and Activists
Through an analysis of 10 months of nationwide searches on Flock Safety's servers, we discovered that more than 50 federal, state, and local agencies ran hundreds of searches through Flock's national network of surveillance data in connection with protest activity. In some cases, law enforcement specifically targeted known activist groups...
The Trump Administration’s Order on AI Is Deeply Misguided
Widespread news reports indicate that President Donald Trump’s administration has prepared an executive order to punish states that have passed laws attempting to address harms from artificial intelligence (AI) systems. This approach is deeply misguided.
EFF Demands Answers About ICE-Spotting App Takedowns
SAN FRANCISCO – The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) sued the departments of Justice (DOJ) and Homeland Security (DHS) today to uncover information about the federal government demanding that tech companies remove apps that document immigration enforcement activities in communities throughout the country. Tech platforms took down several such apps (including...
The Patent Office Is About To Make Bad Patents Untouchable
The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) has proposed new rules that would effectively end the public’s ability to challenge improperly granted patents at the Patent Office itself. We need EFF supporters to file public comments opposing these rules this week. The USPTO is moving quickly, and staying silent will...
Strengthen Colorado’s AI Act
Powerful institutions are using automated decision-making against us. Fortunately, workers, patients, and renters are resisting. The Colorado AI Act is a good step in the right direction. Still, EFF urges Colorado to strengthen it, especially in its enforcement mechanisms.
Lawsuit Challenges San Jose’s Warrantless ALPR Mass Surveillance
SAN JOSE, Calif. – San Jose and its police department routinely violate the California Constitution by conducting warrantless searches of the stored records of millions of drivers’ private habits, movements, and associations, the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) and American Civil Liberties Union of Northern California (ACLU-NC) argue in a lawsuit...
Speaking Freely: Benjamin Ismail
Interviewer: Jillian YorkBenjamin Ismail is the Campaign and Advocacy Director for GreatFire, where he leads efforts to expose the censorship apparatus of authoritarian regimes worldwide. He also runs/oversees the App Censorship Project, including the AppleCensorship.com and GoogleCensorship.org platforms, which track mobile app censorship globally. From 2011 to 2017,...
A Surveillance Mandate Disguised As Child Safety: Why the GUARD Act Won't Keep Us Safe
A new bill sponsored by Sen. Hawley (R-MO), Sen. Blumenthal (D-CT), Sen. Britt (R-AL), Sen. Warner (D-VA), and Sen. Murphy (D-CT) would require AI chatbots to verify all users’ ages, prohibit minors from using AI tools, and implement steep criminal penalties for chatbots that promote or solicit certain harms. That...
