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FBI Director Christopher Wray prepares to testify during a Senate Select Committee on Intelligence hearing, on Capitol Hill, in Washington, DC, 14 April 2021, GRAEME JENNINGS/POOL/AFP via Getty Images

Should Congress close the FBI’s backdoor for spying on American communications? Yes.

All of us deserve basic protection against government searches and seizures that the Constitution provides, including requiring law enforcement to get a warrant before it can access our communications. But currently, the FBI has a backdoor into our communications, a loophole, that Congress can and should close.

In this photo illustration the logo for Grindr, a social networking application for the gay community, is displayed on a smartphone, 20 November 2019, Avishek Das/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images

Data brokers are the problem

Why should you care about data brokers? Reporting this week about a Substack publication outing a priest with location data from Grindr shows once again how easy it is for anyone to take advantage of data brokers’ stores to cause real harm.

Texas state representatives at the State Capitol, during a special session to discuss a number of legislative issues, including social media censorship, in Austin, Texas, 8 July 2021, Tamir Kalifa/Getty Images

Right or left, you should be worried about Big Tech censorship

Claiming that “right-wing voices are being censored,” Republican-led legislatures in Florida and Texas have introduced legislation to “end Big Tech censorship” – these laws are deeply misguided and nakedly unconstitutional.

Supporters of Julian Assange protest on his 50th birthday and call for his release, at Piccadilly Circus, London, UK, 3 July 2021, Matthew Chattle/Barcroft Media via Getty Images

UK High Court grants limited permission for US to appeal Assange extradition ruling

The US appeal is against the January 2021 decision by UK District Judge Vanessa Baraitser, ruling against Assange’s extradition to the US on mental health grounds.

An Iranian man shows on his mobile phone a statement declaring the website of Iran's English-language television station Press TV "has been seized by the United Government", in Tehran, 23 June 2021, -/AFP via Getty Images

CPJ calls on U.S. to publish list of all websites recently seized in sanctions crackdown

The United States Justice Department should clarify its rationale for seizing dozens of media websites last week, and should publish a list of all websites targeted for allegedly violating sanctions.

Black Lives Matter protesters march on the one-year anniversary of George Floyd's murder, crossing the Brooklyn Bridge to Manhattan, New York City, United States, 25 May 2021, Tayfun Coskun/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images

A year of action in support of the Black-led movement against police violence and racism

“Black lives matter on the streets. Black lives matter on the internet.” The anniversary of George Floyd’s murder has inspired EFF to reflect on these commitments and the work of so many courageous people who stood up to demand justice.

Massachusetts lawmakers hold a hearing regarding the state's proposed right-to-repair act, in Boston, 13 January 2020, David L. Ryan/The Boston Globe via Getty Images

EFF files amicus brief defending the right to repair in Massachusetts

The state’s right-to-repair law, which gives users and independent repair shops access to critical information about the cars they drive and service, passed by ballot initiative with an overwhelming 74.9% majority.

Rights groups condemn lawsuits brought by ENRC against public watchdogs

“ENRC’s campaign of legal action across two jurisdictions targeting more than a dozen people and other entities seems a deliberate attempt to shift the focus away from ENRC’s alleged corruption to those conducting legitimate investigations, whether journalists or public authorities.”

The Twitter logo is displayed on a smartphone with the official page of the President of the United States, Donald Trump, 5 June 2020, Photo Illustration by Rafael Henrique/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images

Newly released records show how Trump tried to retaliate against social media for fact-checking

A year ago, President Trump issued an Executive Order that deputized federal agencies to retaliate against online social media services on his behalf, a disturbing and unconstitutional attack on internet free expression.

A man walks by a Black Lives Matter mural in Los Angeles, California, 24 May 2021, as activists call on the mayor and the City Council to pressure Congress to pass the Floyd Police Reform Bill, APU GOMES/AFP via Getty Images

EFF sues police standards agency to obtain use of force training materials

Police group abusing copyright law to withhold documents, violate Public Records Act.

A United states Courthouse, Oakland, California, 19 May 2021, Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

EFF tells California Court that forensic software source code must be disclosed to the defendant

EFF filed an amicus brief in State v. Alvin Davis in California, in support of Mr. Davis’s right to inspect the source code of STRMix, the forensic DNA software used at his trial.

Mai Khoi performs at the opening of the Faces of Free Expression exhibit. Photo by Matt Petras

Unshuttered voices: A collaboration, an exhibit, and a call to action

IFEX partnered with the International Freedom of Expression Project on an exhibit to spotlight the work being done around the globe to defend freedom of expression, and launch a proposal for a ‘marketplace of ideas’ artist space in downtown Pittsburgh.

Baker-Berry Library, Dartmouth College, Hanover, New Hampshire, 1 July 2017, Education Images/Universal Images Group via Getty Images

Proctoring tools and dragnet investigations rob students of due process

While many universities have used proctoring tools that purport to help educators prevent cheating, Dartmouth’s Geisel School of Medicine has gone dangerously further.

A woman accesses the Oracle website on her laptop, in Hong Kong, 18 January 2017, S3studio/Getty Images

Victory for fair use: The Supreme Court reverses the Federal Circuit in Oracle v. Google

In a win for innovation, the U.S. Supreme Court has held that Google’s use of certain Java Application Programming Interfaces (APIs) is a lawful fair use. The Court recognized that copyright only promotes innovation and creativity when it provides breathing room for those who are building on what has come before.

Amazon workers gather in front of the building's main gate during a national strike by thousands of drivers, hub and warehouse workers, in Aversa, Campania, Italy, 22 March 2021, Antonio Balasco/KONTROLAB/LightRocket via Getty Images

Dystopia Prime: Amazon subjects its drivers to biometric surveillance

Amazon, the company that brought you Ring doorbell cameras and Rekognition face surveillance, has a tenuous understanding of both privacy and consent.