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EFF Continues the Fight Against FOSTA and Internet Censorship - EFFector 31.11
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In our 737th issue:
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Members make it possible for EFF to fight for your rights. Become a member today.
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In our 737th issue:
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Members make it possible for EFF to fight for your rights. Become a member today.
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Top Features
We are asking a court to declare the Allow States and Victims to Fight Online Sex Trafficking Act of 2017 (“FOSTA”) unconstitutional and prevent it from being enforced. The law was written so poorly that it actually criminalizes a substantial amount of protected speech and, according to experts, actually hinders efforts to prosecute sex traffickers and aid victims.
In our lawsuit, two human rights organizations, an individual advocate for sex workers, a certified non-sexual massage therapist, and the Internet Archive are challenging the law as an unconstitutional violation of the First and Fifth Amendments. Although the law was passed by Congress for the worthy purpose of fighting sex trafficking, its broad language makes criminals of those who advocate for and provide resources to adult, consensual sex workers and actually hinders efforts to prosecute sex traffickers and aid victims.
Against all the odds, but with the support of nearly a million Europeans, MEPs voted earlier this month to reject the EU's proposed copyright reform—including controversial proposals to create a new "snippet" right for news publishers, and mandatory copyright filters for sites that published user-uploaded content.
The change was a testimony to how powerful and fast-moving net activists can be. Four weeks ago, few knew that these crazy provisions were even being considered. By the June 20th vote, Internet experts were weighing in, and wider conversations were starting on sites like Reddit.
The result was a vote on July 5th of all MEPS that culminated in a 318 against 278 vote in favour of withdrawing the Parliament's support for the languages.
EFF Updates
It’s easy to feel adrift these days. The rising tide of social unrest and political extremism can be overwhelming, but on EFF’s 28th birthday our purpose has never been more clear. With the strength of our numbers, we can fight against the scourge of pervasive surveillance, government and corporate overreach, and laws that stifle creativity and speech. That's why we've launched the Shipshape Security membership drive with a goal of 1,500 new and renewing members. For two weeks only, you can join EFF for as little $20 and get special member swag that will remind you to keep your digital cabin shipshape.
After a hearing that stripped California’s gold-standard net neutrality bill of much of its protections, California legislators have negotiated new amendments that restore the vast majority of those protections to the bill. The big ISPs and their money did not defeat the voices of the many, many people who want and need a free and open Internet.
Hodder and Stoughton, a large British publisher, has sent a letter to Mihalis Eleftheriou claiming that it has rights to a patent that covers recorded language lessons, and demanding that he stop providing online courses. Hodder and Stoughton contends that Language Transfer infringes U.S. Patent No. 6,565,358, titled “Language teaching system.” The patent essentially covers a language lesson on tape.
EFF has sent a response to Hodder and Stoughton on Eleftheriou’s behalf. We explain that the ’358 patent is plainly invalid under the Supreme Court’s 2014 decision in Alice v. CLS Bank. Our letter also explains that the ’358 patent is invalid as anticipated and obvious. Eleftheriou will continue to offer free language courses to people within the United States. We hope Hodder and Stoughton comes to its senses and abandons its absurd demands.
When government agencies refuse to let the members of the public watch what they’re doing, drones can be a crucial journalistic tool. But now, some members of Congress want to give the federal government the power to destroy private drones it deems to be an undefined “threat.” Even worse, they’re trying to slip this new, expanded power into unrelated, must-pass legislation without a full public hearing. Worst of all, the power to shoot these drones down will be given to agencies notorious for their absence of transparency, denying access to journalists, and lack of oversight.
The Trump Administration’s “zero tolerance” program of criminally prosecuting all undocumented adult immigrants who cross the U.S.-Mexico border has had the disastrous result of separating as many as 3,000 children—many no older than toddlers—from their parents and family members. The federal government doesn’t appear to have kept track of where each family member has ended up. Now politicians, agency officials, and private companies argue DNA collection is the way to bring these families back together. DNA is not the answer. Immigrant families shouldn’t have to trade the civil rights violation of being separated from their family members for the very real threats to privacy and civil liberties posed by DNA collection.
Tech companies, especially those selling surveillance equipment, must step up and ensure that they aren’t assisting governments in committing human rights, civil rights, and civil liberties abuses. This obligation applies whether those governments are foreign or domestic, federal or local.
One way tech companies can navigate this difficult issue is by adopting a robust Know Your Customer program, modeled on requirements that companies already have to follow in the export control and anti-bribery context.
Announcements
EFF was founded 28 years ago, and during that time, EFF’s logo remained more or less unchanged. This helped us develop a consistent identity — people in the digital rights world instantly recognize our big red circle and the heavy black “E.” But the logo had some downsides. It’s hard to read, doesn’t say much about our organization, and looks a bit out of date. We are finally getting around to a new look for EFF.
Join EFF at OSCON, O'Reilly's blockbuster open source event at the Portland Convention Center. Stop by the EFF booth #P21 to learn about the latest in the digital civil liberties movement. You can even donate to get some great swag or become an official member! There has never been a more important time to ensure that our rights have a defender. We hope to see you there.
HOPE (Hackers on Planet Earth) returns to the Hotel Pennsylvania for its twelfth iteration this year, hosted by our friends at 2600. The biennial conference is one of the foremost hacker events, chock full of projects, talks, workshops, and more. We'll have a table in the vendor area, where you can stop by and become a member at a discount, and pick up our latest swag. EFF staff will also be giving several talks at the conference.
Join EFF at BSidesLV in the Tuscany Suites & Casino! Catch some great information security talks and don't forget to stop by the EFF table to learn about the latest news in the digital freedom movement.
Join EFF at Black Hat Briefings! Be sure to stop by our information booth in the Business Hall to find out about the latest developments in protecting digital freedom. You can even sign up as an EFF member and pick up some great swag! As in past years, EFF staff attorneys will be present to help support the community. If you have legal concerns regarding an upcoming talk or sensitive InfoSec research that you are conducting at any time, please email info@eff.org and we will do our best to get you the help that you need.
Job Openings
We are seeking an organized, empathetic, and motivated individual with excellent communication skills to join EFF as its Receptionist as a member of our Operations Team. The Receptionist is the often the public’s first point of access at EFF. You will be performing a wide variety of tasks including giving general information about our work, greeting and welcoming the staff and guests, and referring people to a variety of teams within the organization.
The legislative activist will focus on EFF’s work advocating for state laws that protect people’s right to privacy, free expression, and innovation, as well as advocating against laws that would undercut those rights. EFF intervenes in state legislation nationwide with a particular emphasis on the California legislature. This person will also work in other areas as needed including national campaigns and non-legislative work.
EFF is seeking a full-time Staff Technologist to work with our Browser Extensions team as the lead developer for HTTPS Everywhere.
EFF is looking to hire an experienced litigator with an unshakeable sense of justice and Fourth Amendment expertise to join our civil liberties team.
MiniLinks
When everyone is using encryption apps, "the fact that you are using the app at all is not an indicator that you are someone the government might be interested in watching"—and that makes everyone safer, says EFF Staff Technologist Erica Portnoy. (Select All)
New DHS disclosures reveal Cybersecurity Information Sharing Act failures: Incentives for corporate cooperation with government cybersecurity efforts have proven unsuccessful, attracting only 6 companies to participate. (Nextgov)
The copyright robots strike again. Yet another example of how automated filters fail to recognize human context. (BBC News)
There’s no “broadly applicable security advice” for victims of domestic abuse and harassment, says EFF’s Eva Galperin —and smart home devices can complicate the situation even more. (Engadget)
Miami is removing parking meters, and drivers often have to use a privately-owned third-party app instead. But a lot of people have a lot of questions. (WLRN)
Consumers should be allowed to choose the ISP that they want. Major ISPs want to make that harder. (Engadget)
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