A defining moment for Myanmar

Four years after the military perpetrated a coup in Myanmar, the junta continues to extend its power and control through a digital iron curtain that allows them to carry out “systematic” human rights atrocities with impunity, in the dark. But there are now signs that the growing resistance movement is weakening that control. “In 2025, Myanmar has a real chance to overcome the military dictatorship — but it will not happen unless the world stands firmly on the side of the people, and does not enable their oppressors,” says Access Now’s Wai Phyo Myint. Learn what it will take to turn the tide. Read more via Tech Policy Press

Foreign tech, domestic repression

Amid protests, Georgia plans purchase of Israeli data extraction tech

In Georgia, people have been protesting for months on end, voicing their opposition to allegedly fraudulent elections that have installed the increasingly repressive and authoritarian Dream Party. Now the government is reportedly planning to purchase Israeli surveillance firm Cellebrite’s dangerous cell phone data extraction technology — the same technology that was used against activists and journalists in Serbia, forcing the company to withdraw licensing. Read more via OCCRP

LISTEN: “How to keep your data safe when protesting”

After the Georgia protests broke out, we published digital safety tips for peaceful protest, together with our partner CyberHUB-AM. In this Somewhere on Earth podcast episode, Mohammed al-Maskati, director of Access Now’s Digital Security Helpline, shares more advice for protesters heading into situations where their personal safety is at risk. Tune in via Somewhere on Earth

When tech is turned against migrants

How a new Europol reform threatens digital war on migrants

The new European Commission claims to want to manage migration “in an orderly way" with solidarity at its heart. But in practice this has often meant demonizing and criminalizing people seeking safety in the EU. A new report from the #ProtectNotSurveil coalition, co-led by Access Now, EDRi, and the Equinox Initiative for Racial Justice, finds that a proposed law tasking Europol with leading the fight against migrant “smuggling” is "systematically flawed," and would only increase harmful digital surveillance and criminalization of migrants and racialized people — degrading human rights for everyone. Read more via Access Now

ICE contractor plans for surveillance boom under Trump migrant crackdown

Demonizing migrants is good for business — if your business is surveillance, that is. As U.S. President Trump steps up his administration’s crackdown on immigrants, The Guardian investigates Geo Group, a government contractor that is ramping up production of its migrant-tracking tools, including GPS units and ankle monitors, in anticipation of increased demand. Read more via The Guardian

Digital rights on ice

U.S. funding freeze sparks “total chaos” around the world

The gutting of USAID has swiftly turned the U.S. from one of the world’s biggest supporters of digital rights to a force disrupting years of progress — a central topic at the RightsCon summit in Taipei last week. While the U.S. Supreme Court has now halted a Trump administration freeze on payments for work already done, it’s not clear what will happen next. WIRED talks to Access Now’s Mohammed al-Maskati and other experts about what this means for people and communities at risk. Read more via WIRED

MacArthur Foundation to increase giving for two years in response to “crisis”

In countries like Myanmar, the USAID funding freeze is only compounding the impact of dwindling humanitarian aid, deepening what the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) has called a “polycrisis.” One of the funding organizations stepping into the breach: the MacArthur Foundation, which has not only committed to increase giving, but is calling on other funders to do the same. Read more via Associated Press

Amplifying the voices of freedom fighters

LISTEN: Local sound bites from RightsCon 2025

Whether or not you joined us for RightsCon, this podcast series from the Association for Progressive Computing (APC) is worth your time. APC interviews five activists in East Asia, exploring how they perceive and tackle the biggest challenges they face, and the work they do that gives them hope and inspiration. Tune in via APC

Opportunities and other highlights

LEARN: “Reconnecting Gaza, empowering the future”

On March 18, Palestinian rights groups Makan and 7amleh will hold a joint webinar to explore the impact of war on Gaza’s telecommunications infrastructure and the need to #ReconnectGaza to defend Palestinians’ human rights and achieve justice. Learn more and register here. Read more via 7amleh

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