Encryption: all for one, or none for all

Strong end-to-end encryption protects everyone's right to private and secure digital communications — and preserving it is a life or death issue for journalists, human rights activists, and dissidents around the world. This week we joined a coalition led by Open Rights Group and EDRi in opposing dangerous anti-security provisions in the U.K.'s Online Safety Bill, which would undermine everyone's privacy in the name of protecting children. As Signal president Meredith Whittaker points out, “Encryption works for all or it’s broken for all." Read more via Open Rights Group

This time, Apple doesn't bite

We're old enough to remember when Apple announced its own plans to circumvent end-to-end encryption. So we're especially pleased to see the company join the opposition to the anti-security provisions of the Online Safety Bill, noting in particular the negative impact on "journalists, human rights activists, and diplomats." Read more via BBC News

A conversation with Meredith Whittaker, president of Signal

Strong encryption is not only essential for our digital security, it enables people to reclaim power in the era of mass surveillance, argues Whittaker in an interview with Tech Policy Press. “The will to mass surveillance is a will to power," she says. "Information asymmetry is a core tool of the powerful that is used to exact that power over those less powerful than them.” Read the whole interview, and don't miss this video recording of Whittaker's talk with WIRED's Gideon Lichfield at RightsCon Costa Rica earlier this month. Read more via Tech Policy Press

You can't silence us

Ireland’s data protection authority wants to gag critics

It’s never a good sign when a public agency tasked with defending fundamental rights is given the power to breach them. But that’s exactly what happened when the Irish Minister for State gave Ireland’s Data Protection Commissioner the ability to gag parties in ongoing procedures. In practice, this means civil society organizations that take action against Big Tech companies based in Ireland won't be able to speak publicly about their concerns, and could be prosecuted for doing so. Access Now strongly condemns this egregious overreach and urges the Irish government to withdraw this measure immediately. Read more via EDRI

She defied a Syrian dictator – now Canada considers her a security risk

Speaking out against horrific human rights abuses shouldn't get you deported. But after surviving arrest and torture under Bashar al-Assad’s regime, Syrian human rights defender and Citizen Lab affiliate Noura Aljizawi is suffering what she describes as psychological trauma as she faces scrutiny by immigration officials in Canada, where she is seeking permanent residency. We stand with Aljizawi and Citizen Lab in urging Canadian officials to ensure #JusticeForNoura. Read more via CTV News

A race against time to preserve the work of Mexico's murdered journalists

Some of the most important — and dangerous — reporting in Mexico is published online; on blogs, personal websites, or Facebook pages. When journalists face retaliation and are murdered for speaking out, their work often disappears too. Here's how one organization archives that work, with the goal of helping to "design better public policy" to prevent violence against local reporters and citizen journalists, and to ensure the deaths of these truth-tellers is not in vain. Read more via Slate

AI moderation is no match for hate speech in Ethiopian languages

The majority of people using Meta's Facebook platform speak a language other than English. Yet the company continues to disproportionately focus its content moderation efforts and investments on English. New research from the Center for Democracy and Technology looks at how AI systems fail to address hateful content in Amharic and Tigrinya — languages spoken in Ethiopia's Tigray, where more than 600,000 people have been killed during recent conflict. Read more via Rest of World

Meta’s Oversight Board urges more transparency about content decisions during conflict

It’s clear that in Ethiopia and other countries, the decisions that Meta makes about content can have deadly consequences. Now, Meta’s own Oversight Board is recommending that the company adopt clearer, more transparent protocols for content created in or about war or conflict, including putting in place mechanisms to preserve possible evidence of war crimes. UC Berkeley's Alexa Koenig breaks down the recommendations. Read more via Tech Policy Press

Declaration of principles for content and platform governance in times of crisis

Ensuring adequate resources for moderating content in languages other than English is just one piece of the puzzle. In case you missed it, here’s the set of principles we developed with our civil society partners ARTICLE 19, Mnemonic, the Center for Democracy and Technology, JustPeace Labs, Digital Security Lab Ukraine, Centre for Democracy and Rule of Law, and the Myanmar Internet Project, to guide companies in their responses before, during, and after a crisis. Read more via Access Now

No to deceptive designs

U.S. FTC cracks down on Amazon’s shady corporate practices

We’re pleased to see the U.S. Federal Trade Commission announce that it will take action against Amazon for “tricking users into signing up for Prime subscriptions — and then deliberately making it hard to cancel.” That’s a clear example of deceptive design — also known as “dark patterns” — intended to mislead and confuse people. Check out our new guide to learn what we recommend U.S. lawmakers do to further protect their constituents. Read more via Access Now

Opportunities and other highlights

Join our team and fight for digital rights globally!

We’re hiring a Senior Policy Analyst/Counsel (East Asia), a Communities Communications Coordinator (several location options), a Grants and Contracts Manager (New York/remote), and a Senior Finance Officer (Belgium). Check out the details and apply. Read more via Access Now

How to protect digital rights during elections

Following last weekend’s elections in Sierra Leone, Access Now’s Felicia Anthonio joined a conversation led by Paradigm Initiative on how to tackle digital rights challenges during election periods. Check out the main takeaways, and if you want technical guidance on how to prepare for an internet shutdown, watch the training we and our partners held before the Sierra Leone election, including advice from Tor Project and OONI. Read more via Paradigm Initiative